Diamond Dogs
by Ornstein the Dragon Slayer
Summary: A private military company led by the most legendary soldier on the planet. Diamond Dogs, an army that isn't burdened by other nations. Each member has lost something, each of them given purpose and a reason to live by the legendary Big Boss. They carry diamonds made from the ashes of their fallen comrades. They are Diamond Dogs. CHAPTER 4 is up.
1. Chapter 1

**NA: I finally got to playing Metal Gear Solid 5… and wow! What a rush! The reason why I like PMCs so much is because of Metal Gear Solid, just how they do things especially with MSF and Diamond Dogs is just thrilling.**

 **Just to let you know this will not follow MGS canon but will borrow elements from all MGS games… well mostly Peace Walker, Four, and Five. So the timeline is going to be a bit… well… you know.**

 **This won't be just crossing with RWBY and MGS, but several other military series.**

 **EDIT: In light of Volume 3's latest episode, some things were changed… it just completely messed with so much things that I had planned so I decided to change some stuff… especially with the pairing.**

 **~oOo~**

 _ **You ever wonder why they carry diamonds into battle?**_

 **Somewhere in the Seychelles**

How could it have come to this? Why did this happen? So many dead because of a disease that none of them had any knowledge about. He had been in this business for four years, four wonderful years with these amazing people. He had been trained by one of them, treated like a son to him. Before he became one of them, he was an outcast… the black sheep… his older sisters were successful in their lives, while he lived under her shadow for as long as he could remember.

No matter how hard he tried to move up in his old life he just could not get to what he wanted.

The day he was accepted into a prestigious academy due to strange circumstances was something he had never expected. With the family heirloom he took with him he set out to become something he knew he could not become.

A hero…

Even with the improvements he had gotten from the help of a great friend it was just not enough. He was introduced into a world that he had no idea what to do in. He didn't belong.

Months later a near catastrophe occurred. He lost his right arm and nearly lost his life in the process. His closest friend became something even greater than he could realize. And that was it… he felt so little that no one even noticed what he did next.

Leaving a letter in his dorm room and the heirloom on the table, he packed his bags and left… not to return home… but for the lands beyond the veil. With the money he had on him he bribed a smuggler and shipped him out. To his surprise, someone came with him, a certain girl of short red hair and silver eyes. She too had felt inadequate after everything that had happened. While they did remain victorious she still felt like she wasn't strong enough. The words of a certain orange-haired man had nearly shattered her before he was eaten by a gryphon.

But disaster struck when a storm hit them and sunk the ship.

News of the ship's departure came home and was confirmed that they were on board. Family and friends then pulled their resources to come looking for them but none came up positive. It was as if they had just vanished. It wasn't only after four years since their disappearance that they had received information and confirmation that they were alive on the other side. It was also there that they had realized that the world was a much bigger place, and that the world wasn't all sunshine and daisies.

The world was a different place.

As for her, she somewhat found solace in the place she had decided to call home.

But as for him, he met the one man that would change his life forever. A man that would change the way he saw the world, a man that gave him purpose and a reason to live…

 _ **Flashback**_

 _ **Four Years Ago**_

 _"You're telling me that they're from Antartica?" A bearded man with an eyepatch asked another man who wore glasses. The latter had a coat that covered over him and with his right arm missing, and with the way he stood it was also revealed that his left leg was on prosthetics as well._

 _They looked at the boy who had a missing arm and the girl with the strange weapon lying next to her. By the looks of it he had already lost his arm before the ship he was in sank due to a freak storm. Unfortunately the were the only ones that made it out._

 _"How they got here on his own is weird." The second man said. "Antarctica is a mystery, and that ship they wereon was nothing like we had ever seen. Something's there, something we don't know about, and these two… can maybe tell us."_

 _By the bedside of the still unconscious duo was medic tending to their needs. The medic though had a distinct shrapnel piece on the right of his head._

 _"How is he_ _, doc_ _?" The man with the eyepatch asked._

 _"It seems that the worst has come to pass." The medic replied. "They should come to at any time. It looks they're just tired from their perilous."_

 _Moments later the boy opened his eyes to see that he was in a metallic room, lying on a bed. He turned his head to see his friend still unconscious._

 _"Ruby!"_

 _"She's fine." The medic assured him and calmed him down._

 _"W-Wha… where am I?"_

 _"You are in Mother Base, somewhere in the Seychelles. It is home of the Diamond Dogs." The medic replied. "How are you feeling?"_

 _"I… who are you?"_

 _"I am_ _just a medic." The older man said. "But we are not here to talk about me. So… what's your name, kid?"_

 _He tried to get up but couldn't do it by himself due to exhaustion, so_ _the medic_ _gently helped him. "My name… my name is…"_

 _ **1 Week Later**_

 _"You don't wanna go home?" Big Boss asked._

 _Jaune shook his head. "I ran away… from it all. The more I look at those machines the more I began to hate them. In a way they're worse than nukes. As much as I wish for them to disappear I know they won't, so much countries have invested too much on them."_

 _The older man puffed his cigar and nodded in understanding. "So what do you want to do now?"_

 _"I want to stay." The golden-haired boy replied. "I want to take up the youth program_ _the doctor_ _told me about and become a Diamond Dog. I want my life to truly mean something. I want a reason to live."_

 _Big Boss smirked as he looked behind him to see Ocelot and Kaz looking at the boy with smiles on their faces._

 _"Alright."_

 _ **End Flashback**_

How could it have come to this?

A man of the age of twenty-one, currently wearing a gas mask due to the outbreak, and a green camouflaged combat dress with a tactical hood, stood alongside the men on the command platform of Mother Base. Beside him was Ruby, clinging to his arm as tears ran down her face. Today was a tragic day for the Diamond Dogs, as they were sending off more than a hundred of their men who willingly gave their lives to prevent a deadly outbreak. But thanks to the efforts of the rest of the uninfected Diamond Dogs they were able to come up with a cure and immunization. But unfortunately it could not save those that were already dying.

Right now the cremation of those who died were under way, one of those who died was Stubborn Boa, the young man's mentor and older brother-figure throughout the four years he has been as one of them. At some point during his first year as a member of the Diamond Dogs, Stubborn Boa had come to appreciate his company, not only as his pupil, but as the son he never had.

Kaz told him that each member of the Diamond Dogs were soldiers who had lost something… he didn't know what that meant at first until today. Kaz lost his right arm and left leg, but before that the original Mother Base in the Caribbean was destroyed by an attack from XOF. Ocelot never really knew his parents, Big Boss lost so much during his lifetime that he lost count. And Ruby… she lost her mother long ago… and the rest… they all had their stories.

"IT'S YOUR FAULT!" A fifty your old man with an exoskeleton supporting his legs pointed accusingly at Big Boss. This man was Huey Emmerich, a man with a great mind as he had the ability to build Metal Gears, literal walking weapons. "They're dead because of you!"

The young man stepped forward as he wanted to shut the man up but Ruby stopped him with her hands wrapped around his waist.

"Don't." She begged. "Please don't."

The Diamond Dog soldier just gritted his teeth and relented.

"What!?" Kaz turned around to look at the scientist.

"He's right." Big Boss spoke up as he looked out into the sea. "I shot each and every one of them. I killed them with my own hands."

"They were on your side!" Huey continued. "I'm on your side! And you just turned them all to ashes!"

Ocelot walked up and placed a hand on his shoulder, essentially telling him to calm down and take a step back.

Kaz on the other hand stepped forward. "They wanted you to shoot. It was that, or be burned alive. C'mon… let's get this over with."

Two other men stepped forward, one holding the jar of ashes and the other holding a banner representing the Diamond Dogs. Before they could even reach the edge Big Boss stopped them.

"Wait." Their leader ordered as he took the jar. He knelt down and tipped the jar carrying the cremated ashes of the dead, but before he could even drop a single spec of ash, he stopped. "No… I won't scatter your sorrow into the heartless sea."

He dug his hand into the jar and tasted the ash. "I will always be with you. Plant your roots in me." He dug his hand into it one more time and spread the ashes all over him whitening every part of his face. "I won't see you end as ashes… You're all diamonds."

"We're not burying them at sea?" Kaz asked. "What, then?"

Big Boss then handed the jar back to the soldier. "We'll make diamonds from their ashes. Take them into battle with us."

"A shining light." Ruby spoke up in realization as to what that meant, causing Kaz to nod.

"To our brothers-in-arms. Even in death…"

The commander nodded and looked out into the sunset. "We are Diamond Dogs."

 **Diamond Dogs**

 **Chapter 1: What it means to be a Diamond Dog**

"Jaune?" Ruby peeked into the room and saw her lover Jaune out in the balcony of their room.

"Four years, Ruby." Jaune whispered as the young woman walked up to him and rested her head on his shoulder. "Four years since we came here… I've gotten a lot stronger… but still… I wasn't strong enough to save him."

"None of us had any idea." Ruby told him. "His death wasn't your fault."

"Then why do I feel responsible?"

"We all do." She whispered as she cupped his face and brought it close to her. "We lost family today. But as long as we keep sticking together everything is going to be alright."

He rested his head up against hers and sighed. They looked into each other's eyes and brought their lips closer into a soft kiss.

Yeah… everything was going to be alright.

 **~oOo~**

The world Jaune and Ruby now lived in was a scary place. Her history filled with so much bloodshed.

At the **beginning of the 21st century** , few could imagine the conflagration sparked by a myriad of local flashpoints spanning every corner of the globe. Europe was overwhelmed by refugees, tens of millions fleeing from conflicts fueled by anger, greed and years of financial crisis and stagnation which started in the least stable regions and inexorably spread.

Greece's final complete economic collapse triggered a chain reaction that threw Europe into chaos. Bulgaria took the worst of it – as the Bulgarian Greek-owned banks collapsed with Greece. The entire region was swept into a maelstrom of havoc, ruining countless lives and destroying any semblance of a status quo, but providing opportunities for those unscrupulous enough to exploit the situation. The remnants of the European Union were paralyzed by the growing gap between the governments and their people, and violent anti-government protests became commonplace, giving birth to numerous anarchist movements. Weapon caches from the crumbling governments of the third-world became the armories of the insurgencies.

In the Middle East, the Syrian crisis spilled into the entire region, shattering Syria into multiple warring regions with Kurdish militias attempting to carve their own territories out of the chaos, frequently clashing with Turkish forces in a conflict that rapidly became a full-blown civil war. Dubai had ceased to exist due to a freak sandstorm, and the rest of the UAE, Saudi, and Sudan were embroiled in a fierce war with Iran.

As Europe reeled from these blows, the newly elected American president decided to turn towards isolationism by bringing home most of the troops serving abroad, fearing "another Iraq" would happen if the American soldiers were further involved in the Middle East. This was supported by new technologies that allowed the Americans to be energy independent. The new American strategy of providing military support to U.S.-friendly countries relied heavily on the use of American-backed PMC's, as demonstrated by the **2018** War of the Precipice between Israel and its neighbors. This strategy had major repercussions, leading to the loss of direct influence in many parts of the world, especially South America. This in turn led to the rise of the Alianza de Sangre, a multi-national criminal drug cartel that gradually gained direct control over a large part of Mexico and Central America. The cartel funded guerrillas all across South America, starting multiple civil wars and profiting immensely from the turmoil. Most South American governments – aside from Chile and Argentina – were powerless to stop this well-funded criminal organization without assistance, and lawlessness south of the American border gave rise to many American nationalist militias that gradually gained influence across the south.

Asia's largest superpower, China, entered the **late** **2010's** with a series of economic spasms caused by currency fluctuations, oil shortages and increased separatist tendencies in several of its regions. China put policies in place that bordered on martial law, with extensive crackdowns and brutal methods of control, and managed to keep the situation in hand, but just barely.

In Europe, NATO, now in decline, was put to test for the first time in years as nationalist guerrillas appeared in Estonia. The entire Baltic region plummeted into conflict and the chronically underfunded NATO was petitioned to respond. Due to the lack of resources, lack of American backing and fear of starting another global war, armed response was vetoed and NATO for all intents and purposes ceased to exist as an effective structure by **2020**.

The global tensions also spurred violence on the Indian-Pakistani border. Amidst the chaos, five nuclear warheads were stolen from the Pakistani complex at Khushab and one of them was detonated in the Indian city of Hyderabad, leading to the death of millions and to staggering economic losses. The world held its breath, waiting for someone to step forward and announce they were responsible for the attack. This announcement never happened, and the unexplained, senseless violence of this heinous crime served as the final wake-up call for the nations to act.

Weakened by insurgency and internal strife, the world's powers – China, the European Union, Russia and the United States, came together to discuss how to fight the new multi-national threats. After extensive negotiations, a treaty was signed that would change the world forever.

The treaty stipulated that the internal affairs of all the countries participating in the talks would be left to their own militaries, but major threats to entire regions or continents would be handled by the United Nations itself. The UN would use Private Military Companies, freely formed according to the principle of extraterritoriality. While PMCs work independently, the UN would sometimes dictate their operations, but in return they would support them both logistically and politically. Each PMC would be established with its own rules (ranging from ragtag bands of mercenaries to private armies equipped with modern weaponry) but they all would have to adhere to the UN code, lest they become branded as renegades and prosecuted (de facto by other PMCs).

The size of the PMC's could vary from small bands of mercenaries to entire brigades or divisions and their equipment was just as varied – from antiquated vehicles mothballed even by third world militaries to cutting edge machines, purchased from those arms dealers approved by the UN. For these dealers the contract with the UN was very beneficial: for their promise not to supply anyone considered to be the enemy of the UN, the authorities tended to look the other way when it came to the means the dealers employed when "acquiring" their stock. The most successful of these dealers signed exclusive contracts with the largest private forces, making them some of the richest men and women on Earth.

It is also in these areas that numerous private military corporations and mercenaries have been involving themselves in since it has been giving them an influx in activity. Believe it or not large private military corporations like Academi (Formerly known as Blackwater) and other PMCs actually do care about what happens in these wars, most contractors are former military service men and many of them with years of experience.

One of the more controversial PMCs was an upstart company only known as Diamond Dogs, a company started by the legendary Big Boss.

What made them controversial were their youth programs in teaching adolescents on how to properly use a firearm and how to defend themselves. It was through this that a lot of kids were encouraged to join them, to be trained into soldiers once they were old enough. This caused a lot of human rights organizations to demand Diamond Dogs to abolish this policy, of course the company claims that all they had been doing was making these boys feel like they weren't being left out. Diamond Dogs has branch offices all over the world, even Japan. A problem that had risen though was the influx of high school and college dropouts, all of them being male. Diamond Dogs's youth program provided them free education should they wish to join the PMC, to which all of them did.

Because of who Big Boss was Diamond Dogs became one of the fastest growing private military companies in the world. And because the recruitment program was well within legal rights no one could really do anything about it. Each and every one of these young men signed up voluntarily. It was through this that major private military companies like Academi, Sandline International, DynCorp, Northbridge Services Group, RSB Group, Aegis Defence Services, Control Risks Group, Sharp End International, G4S Risk Management, STTEP, Unity Resources Group, Triply Canopy, and Erinys International had begun their own recruitment programs in their respective areas.

But still the problem to these human rights organizations lied with the fact that 15-17 year old boys were starting their military careers at that age, while it was not unheard of for young people at that age to join the military, especially in countries in Central Europe, these boys were already being trained for combat and not just some basic training. But no one really had the right to voice their complaints since girls at that age were already wielding weapons of mass destruction, weapons that could wipe out an entire army in minutes.

Big Boss, who is also known as the 'Father of Western Special Forces' to the entire world, used this opportunity to leave the military and start out his own company. He wanted to build himself a pseudo-nation, and Diamond Dogs was that answer. A soldier's own heaven… an outer heaven, a place where soldiers can still keep being soldiers. Tens of thousands of soldiers came to serve under his command. It is through this that the lives of soldiers will never end. Diamond Dogs grew, with more offshore 'mother bases' built in the Pacific and Atlantic. And what the UN did like about them was that they had a goal of disarming every nuclear weapon in the world, something that they could get by. But nevertheless, Diamond Dogs existed outside the law.

At the same time tragedy struck in Tokyo Japan where the Ginza district was under attack by forces from… another world. The world could not believe their eyes, a gateway to another world had appeared right in the middle of Japan's most populated city. Several people were missing and dozens more were killed, impaled by spears and beheaded by swords. Reports say that the enemy forces resembled that of the ancient Roman army that was complimented by dragons, trolls, goblins, orcs, and many other creatures thought up in fantasy stories.

The superpowers like the European Union, China, and Russia had been vying to try and gain entrance to this 'new world' in order to secure fresh resources, other nations like the now isolationist United States have become paranoid as to whether more of these 'gates' would randomly appear around the world. It did not help that energy from those strange anomalies matched the frequencies to that of the one during to what was now called the Ginza Incident. Another war was not what they want, no matter how less sophisticated this new enemy is.

Japan even refuses the UN's aid in this matter even though it is well within UN's legal right to intervene since they were an international security organization sanctioned by the United Nations. But Japan insisted that the situation had been handled as the country itself had mounted an offensive into the now dubbed Special Region. Within the same day the Japanese Self Defense Force was met with an attack of more than 100,000 troops. Japan won without any casualties because of obvious technological and military superiority while the enemy force suffered more than 60,000 dead.

There had never been this many dead in a single night, not since the Vietnam War. It was a shock to the entire world as they were reminded that Japan could still – reluctantly – fight.

After that, the UN was finally convinced to not intervene.

Yes… this is the world that Jaune and Ruby discovered, while it is a world filled with the horrors of war, it is a world ripe with opportunity.

 **~oOo~**

 **Few Days Later**

"You wanted to see me, Boss?"

Big Boss nodded and smiled at the sight of the young twenty-one year old Diamond Dog. "Just wanted to discuss some things with you. How are you holding up?"

Jaune clutched the diamond necklace and smiled. "Better, now that he's here with me wherever I go."

The legendary soldier nodded and moved to the table where it laid a map of Antarctica. "I just wanted to know more about your home, and what may come out of it. You ran away… but it's only a matter of time until your past catches up. We need to be ready, so what can you tell me?"

The blond furrowed his brows and looked at the map. He looked closer and saw something that just didn't make sense. "Remnant is a lot bigger than this…"

"That's what I thought as well. We helped recover your things from the sunk ship and, as well as the pictures from your 'scroll'. So the only possible explanation is…"

"A gateway." Ocelot concluded. "A gate to another world… you know at first I wouldn't believe it but ever since we have been encountering supernatural forces like psychics it's not too farfetched."

"The veil in Remnant is shrouded by a thick mist." Jaune informed them as he pulled up a map of his birthplace, revealing the several continents. "Atlas is the most militaristic out of all of them while the others would rather use huntsmen to do the job."

"While huntsmen are nice and all they're not really soldiers." Kaz said in a rather disapproving tone. "They're trained to hunt and kill these Grimm… not people. But the real question is… is how does this threshold exist?"

"Nobody really knows." Jaune said with a shrug. "The veil has existed for thousands of years. It probably even predates the kingdoms."

"We can worry about history later." Big Boss reminded them as he put the maps away and replaced them with the files pertaining to the bigger problems at hand. "We need to worry about the current and possible threats. We also have more nukes to disarm."

"Japan is still adamant about not receiving UN or PMC aid." Kaz deduced. "While the nukes won't be a problem there, it's the fact that there could possibly be other gates appearing. We don't know how long that gate in Antarctica has been up, and now we have the more recent one in Tokyo. If more come up then we will have to contain it. What other supernatural occurrences could take place? If another gate does show somewhere, what if what comes out of it could be something worse?"

Jaune clicked his tongue, this world had it bad. Although Japan would be quite welcoming of the Faunus. "A Metal Gear won't have any difficulties tackling these jobs. I mean we do have the now repaired Sahelanthropus. Very convenient."

Kaz frowned. "Huey's lying… I know it… we all know it. We just need more proof as to what he has been up to."

"It'll come." Ocelot said. "The truth always reveals itself. He initially claimed that he hadn't seen his adopted grandchild's face but then 'accidentally' let slip the fact that he used her as a test pilot for the Metal Gear."

"Sir it's because of him that the outbreak even started." Jaune continued. "Why is he even here? Why don't we just have R&D take his research and have him greased?"

"That's not your call to make." Big Boss stated in a 'matter of fact' tone.

"But I do agree with him, Boss." Kaz said in support of Jaune. "Huey's not one of us. While it is true that he's done some good for us, he's only made situations worse for us. Sahelanthtropus repaired by Eli's gang, and then the second outbreak… we lost a lot of good men because of him."

"Just like Ocelot said, Kaz. The truth will reveal itself, only then will we pass judgement." He then turned back to Jaune. "Stalking Jackal, you're dismissed for now. I'll let you know if a job for you comes up. In the meantime spend some more R&R, go treat Ruby. I know you want to get back out there but you're still emotionally compromised."

Jaune sighed and nodded. "Yes Boss."

 **~oOo~**

"So, no work for you?"

Jaune shook his head as he lay his head on the lap of the lover of his life. He still couldn't believe how lucky he was, being in a relationship with someone as amazing as her. Sure Pyrrha was extremely supportive of him, but she didn't have that gentle side that Ruby had. That nurturing side that just soothed him. Her gentle nature and radiant smile was just contagious to him. They hit it off pretty well when they first met, her gentle, sweet, and kind nature reaching out to him, a lost sheep. They quickly became best friends, and then months later he found the courage to ask her out on a date. Although of course their first date was on a lookout tower on the Command Platform, and then after that they went over to the Animal Platform that also served as a zoo.

A single touch from her could calm anyone in seconds.

She lightly tapped his forehead with her fingers and ran them over his messy gold hair. This was the part Jaune always enjoyed, just feeling her gentle fingers while listening to her light humming. He would just lie there on the bench with his head on her lap and just enjoy having her play with his hair while listening to the soothing sound of her voice.

"God…"

"Hm?"

"I'm just wondering…"

"About what?"

He reached out his one real arm and cupped her cheek. "How the hell did I get so lucky to have someone like you?"

Her cheeks lightly flushed pink but didn't seem embarrassed about what he said. "You were just at the right place at the right time. And I am lucky to have met you."

"Not as lucky as I am." He whispered. "I was a lost sheep who ran away from home with you. I wanted to find purpose, a reason to live, and you came with me."

She just continued to play with his hair. "You never told me what your family was like, you know?"

"You remember I have seven sisters, right?"

"I do." She nodded and giggled. "I still can't believe you have that many. What were they like?"

"Ah." He bit his lip. "Well… I'm from the Arc family, known for its history of producing excellent huntsmen. My older sisters of course are all successful huntresses with amazing track records."

"And you?"

Jaune sighs and rests his hands over his stomach. His face now had a look of sadness. "Unfortunately for me I was the black sheep. No matter how hard I tried I just couldn't cut it. Throughout the whole village I was viewed as a disgrace to the Arc name. A few years down the road I decided to use fake transcripts to get into Beacon Academy. That was when I met you and everyone else. It was also when I started to fall for Pyrrha, but later down the road she became something far greater than I ever imagined. It was at that moment I realized that she was far out of my reach… I thought maybe I was finally getting the happiness I always wanted… but…"

"Shh, it's okay." She lightly stroked his hair as he choked on his own words, fighting the urge to shed tears. She completely understood that it was just too painful for him to talk about.

"I was really pathetic back then, wasn't I?"

Ruby shook her head. "No… you were very brave, and strong. Stronger than you ever knew. I remember my mom telling me when I was still a kid of how there are many ways to show others how strong you are, not just by simply using the muscles in your body. What you really needed was for someone to listen, but nobody really gave you that. So I decided to just… listen. You are the love of my life. Always know that if you are in pain I will be there to sooth it."

"You really know how to melt a man's heart, you know that?"

Ruby let out a laugh that was almost angelic. Ruby had matured over the years, though she was till energetic at times, she had learned to control herself. She needed to, not only for herself but for Jaune. The battle four years ago had opened her eyes, not everything was what she had seemed. She could still remember the many people who died there. She finally realized that she had to become stronger, far stronger than ever. So she decided to run away with Jaune, in order to find herself.

Before they could even exchange any more words, the voice of a man came from the stairs, along with the sound of rushing footsteps.

"Jaune!"

"Pequod?" The blond sat up and saw the helicopter pilot running up to him. "What's up?"

"You gotta come quick! Commanders Ocelot and Kaz are questioning that bastard Huey! He was responsible for the second outbreak!"

Ruby widened her eyes in horror as her hands shot up to her mouth.

"Ruby…" Jaune turned to his lover. "Go back to our room and wait there… I'll be right with you after this."

"Jaune…"

"Don't argue with me on this one, please."

 **~oOo~**

 **Command Platform**

 **Warehouse 1**

"Wait." Huey tried to convince his accusers as sweat poured down his face. "What are you talking about? Just what do you plan to do?"

"Present the charges against you." Kaz replied as he frowned at him. "And render an appropriate punishment."

"You're going to put me on trial?!"

Ocelot chuckled. "Call it what you like."

It was at that moment the sounds of hundreds of footsteps came from the doors, and it was there that soldiers of Diamond Dogs came running in with angry cries.

"What is the meaning of this?!" Kaz demanded as he saw the men, along with Jaune, rushing into the warehouse.

"Out of here, all of you." Ocelot ordered. "Back to your posts!"

"No." Kaz paused. "Hang on. Huey has killed their comrades, and interfered with their lives. They had all they can take."

"KILL HIM!" Jaune cried out, followed by the cries of his comrades.

"KILL HIM!"

"KILL THAT SON OF A BITCH!"

"KILL HIM!"

"KILL HIM!"

"KILL HIM!"

"Stop!" Huey tried to placate their anger. "This is insane! You have no evidence whatsoever!" His face then turned to that of disgust as he looked at them. "You say that you are an army free from governments. You talk big about being a nation unto yourselves. But from the outside, you're just thugs, rebels, a militia, terrorists, an unhinged threat to society."

The cries died down as the men listened to the hypocrites words.

"YOU'RE NOTHING BUT A BUNCH OF PSYCOPATHS!"

All was silent as they heard his words. What he had just told them was more than enough.

"'You're'…?" Kaz repeated the word. "So you're not with us?"

"N-No… I didn't…"

"I thought we were on the same side." Kaz said in a mock tone. "That's too bad."

"I didn't mean-"

Kaz stomped his foot onto the metallic floor and turned to the men. "Men, you will have justice. But our organization – the Boss's organization – is built on order, and reason. There will be no lynch mob. So stand down for today. We will gather evidence for this man's crimes. And then, he will be tried! Dismissed!"

"What do you think you're doing?!" Huey said in accusation while the soldiers dispersed. "Go ahead and execute me. It will be murder in the eyes of the world. You've lost your minds, don't you get it?! You're seeing phantoms!"

D-Dog then walked up to Jaune as he stayed behind to glare at the man responsible for the death of an extremely close friend.

"Just look at that dog… no… ANYONE can see that's a wolf! Because you're all a bunch of wild dogs! You wanted to believe he was too! To feel some connection. To fight your loneliness."

It was at that moment that Jaune was beginning to hear his life's story. How he ran away into some wild world. How he felt lonely the entire time. He lowered his head and looked at the bionic arm that was made for him. He tried to fit in at Beacon, tried to act more confident… but no matter what… he was just some wild dog in a civilized world. And so he left, and became a Diamond Dog. A wild dog among other wild dogs. Huey's words had some truth… but he was far too much of a hypocrite.

"You wanted something to cling to! To prove you deserve to be alive! You wanted to forget the death. Your sins. So you'd cling on to dogs, or wolves… or even Big Boss."

It was at that moment that whoever was left in the room was listening to his own story. Using them for his own sad little life. He probably knew what he had done. But he would rather want to believe the lies he had created for himself.

"The Boss is the same, isn't he?" Huey continued as tears went down his face. "Every one of you is alone. That's why you suspect your own."

Jaune then lightly shook his head. This man really was despicable.

"…I know because, I'd do the same… I'm one of you too… alone…"

As some of them decided to stay behind to listen to his pathetic words, his voice intensified.

"OPEN YOUR EYES! What you're doing is murder, plain and simple! All you ever create is war! War and violence can never lead to peace!"

"I've had enough of this." Jaune whispered, his words being heard by both Ocelot, Kaz, and Huey. He turned away but was then stopped by Huey.

"You!" The bespectacled doctor pointed out to the blond. "I can tell you came from a prestigious family. But you gave that all up to become some… wild dog! How much do you really care about Ruby, huh? Or are you simply using her-"

Jaune roared and charged straight at the man, hoping to at least land a single kick to his face. But Ocelot intervened and stopped him about mid-way.

"Just let me shut him up, sir!"

"No." The silver haired gunslinger whispered. "Not yet… you'll get your justice. Just not now."

Jaune growled and made his way out the door with D-Dog following behind him.

"Open your eyes!" Huey cried out once more.

But all that was heard next was Jaune closing the door behind him.

 **~oOo~**

 **1 Week Ago**

 **Second Parasite Outbreak**

 **Quarantine Platform**

Several rescue teams were sent in to help contain the outbreak. Jaune of course was one of them as Stubborn Boa was one of the infected. But the moment Big Boss came in to help any survivors, the order had been given out to terminate the infected as the mutation of the parasite was incurable.

"You have to do it, boy."

"I can't…"

"You have to." Stubborn Boa said as the parasites started to eat through his body, the pain becoming even more unbearable. "I'm already dead… you know that."

"Don't make me do this, bro. Please…"

"Jaune…" The older Diamond Dog called out to him as he wheezed due to the pain getting worse. "There's no other way. You know that. You know… the first time I met you four years ago… I thought you were just some spoiled brat. But it was wrong… you were lost, just like the rest of us. A wandering man who lost his way. Taking you in was the best decision I ever made. MSF or Diamond Dog… it didn't matter to me, as long as I was with my family. Having you a part of that family… best damn day of my life."

Behind the gas mask, the tears started rolling down his face. His breathing becoming erratic as he was now in emotional turmoil. His hand shook as he unholstered his AM D114-9 pistol and shakily aimed it at the head of the man who had been like a father to him these past four years. "Sir…"

"Jaune… I watched you… from a boy to a man." Stubborn Boa said with a crooked smile on his face as blood started pouring out. "I watched it all. My little brother… my…" He coughed out some more blood. "My little brother…"

"Stop… please…"

It was then and there that the blond heard the words he never thought he would ever hear. The words that not even his own family back in Remnant would tell him. In fact no one had ever told him these words.

"And I am PROUD to watch what you have become, a true Diamond Dog. I am proud of you. SO PROUD."

That was it… he just couldn't take it anymore. With his hands on the gun and his finger on the trigger. He took a deep breath and told him.

"Thank you… big bro."

He screamed as he pulled the trigger.

 **[Outro: Leave No Man Behind - Black Hawk Down OST]**

 **NA: Oh man… that last part… that was difficult to write.**

 **Man I hate Huey… then again so does everyone else. I mean that man is just hypocritical bastard. Thank goodness his son is nothing like him.**

 **As for Kaz he never lost his arms or legs, but he still has that somewhat bitter personality over losing the original Mother Base.**


	2. Chapter 2

**NA: This is also crossing with Infinite Stratos, as well… Phantom Task is one of the antagonists… because the name is Phantom Task. So Ichika… welcome to Diamond Dogs!**

 **~oOo~**

 **Seychelles**

 **Mother Base**

"Jaune!" A black-haired young man of roughly the same age wearing a Diamond Dog uniform waved at the blond before approaching him and shaking his hand. "Good to see you man!"

"Ichika." Jaune returned the gesture with a smile. "I thought you'd be in the Pacific?"

"I came here to see that bastard Huey's trial." The Japanese replied. "After that I hope he gets greased."

"You and about everyone else here." The blond muttered with venom in his voice.

"How are you doing since the uh…?"

"Good so far… but Boa..."

Both young men were silent for a moment before Jaune spoke up once again.

"I heard about what happened in Tokyo… some freak gateway opened up. I mean can you believe it? Orcs, goblins, and dragons?"

"We got people still missing." Ichika informed him. "The problem is that my country still refuses to call for aid, saying that they got everything under control. Let's not forget that we got every major superpower trying to get access. It's a shitstorm out there. But yeah… once the trial is over I head back."

"How are uh…" Jaune tried to put in the right words. "How are you and your sister doing?"

"We're…" Ichika hesitated. "You know what… I really don't know anymore."

"Does she…?"

"No." The raven-haired Diamond Dog shook his head. "She doesn't know I'm a Diamond Dog."

"Ichika…" Jaune lightly frowned.

"I don't hate her or anything, it's just hard coming to terms of what she had done in the past, especially when Master Miller told me everything about her and role in the creation of the IS." Ichika said. "I finally understood why she was never around to take care of me. Why she never comes home… why…"

Ichika Orimura, age twenty, younger brother to Chifuyu Orimura. He was thrusted into a world that he had no knowledge about when he accidentally activated a machine that was only accessible to women. A powerful machine that could take on armies and win.

Fifteen years ago an unknown hacker hacked multiple military computers to send 2341 missiles to Japan, the Infinite Stratos known only as the White Knight appeared and neutralised the threat. Soon the other countries sent out their armies to try and capture or destroy the unit, only to have them bested by a single unit. The White Knight would then disappear from the world, never to be seen again, while leaving behind a legacy that came to be called the "White Knight Incident", causing the entire world to impose laws about the usage of IS. It is unknown how other countries succeeded in making Japan comply with the treaty, as the government of Japan was not directly involved with the invention of the IS and the "White Knight" incident. However, perhaps due to the Japanese ethnicity and citizenship of the inventor of the IS Tabane Shinonono, as well as the magnitude of the armaments of other countries prior to the IS, Japan was singled out as the responsible party and was forced to comply.

The main features of the treaty are as follows:

 _Countries are essentially prohibited from employing IS in any kind of armed conflict. However, possession of IS as military-grade units are allowed since they are the only means of deterring and defending against possible armed aggressions involving IS._

 _All information and technology related to IS must be disclosed to the world and shared openly. Any further R &D is put under same restriction upon its actual field-testing, but if the field-testing of newly-acquired technology is done inside IS Academy, the researchers/developers are allowed to keep their technology confidential. _

_Exchange of IS cores is prohibited under any circumstance._

 _Japan and its government are responsible for creating an integrated IS pilot training facility which is required to accept any and all admittance of pilot candidates from any foreign countries, provided they are endorsed by a legitimate government body or foundation. The Japanese government should take appropriate action to ensure that the balance of IS pilots in the world is kept in check. Essentially, the Japanese government was forced to fund and maintain such a facility without any external support._

This had placed a heavy burden on Japan, but either way the IS had become a symbol to the nation, a national icon. In a way the IS had become a deterrent, preventing an all-out worldwide war to occur. But it still hasn't prevented smaller third-world countries in the Middle East, Africa, and Eastern Europe to stop fighting, in fact because of the IS limiting military interventions, something the United States loves doing, several conflicts in smaller countries have intensified. This was also one of the main reasons why the world is almost in shambles. The Infinite Stratos were just as powerful as a nuke, maybe even more. But either way they are a threat to this world.

Big Boss hated these machines, as they had nearly rendered soldiers obsolete. All the major countries in the world had decided that they instead further develop IS technology instead of maintaining militaries. It was only until several nuclear weapons going off in the Middle East that they were given the wakeup call to try and maintain their armies. And Japan had suffered a large number of high school and college dropouts because of Diamond Dogs' youth recruitment program, all of them of course were males as these young men thought that they could not pursue any career other than the military private sector. The IS had almost held the entire world's economy by the balls.

In fact it can be said that the IS's development may have been the reason why Greece's economy collapsed and threw Europe into chaos.

If there is a way, then the Diamond Dogs will find a way and permanently disable the IS. But for now all they can do is combat them with the information they had gathered.

Jaune placed a hand on his friend's shoulder. "You can't just ruin what bonds you have left with her. Sure, she is the pilot of the very machines we detest, but… she's still your sister. Your OLDER sister. Family…"

Ichika nodded and sighed. "Yeah… you're right. But the question is: How do I tell her? How the hell do I even speak to her?"

"That's going to have to be up to you." Jaune said as he patted his friend on the shoulder before walking past him. "And you should probably let your friends know too."

"That's not going to be easy, you know?"

"Nothing we do is ever easy." The blond reminded him. "Especially in our line of work. We are Diamond Dogs after all."

 **Diamond Dogs**

 **Chapter 2: The Jackal**

 **Residential Platform**

Within the confines of Jaune's home a certain gunslinger knocked on the open door.

"Sir!" Jaune saluted the silver-haired man.

"At ease kid." Ocelot said. "May I come in?"

"Of course." The blond nodded and ushered the man in. "What can I do for you commander?"

"Just came to see my favorite student, that's all." The commander of Diamond Dogs' Ocelot Unit replied as he sat down with Ruby immediately serving him some water. "Thanks Ruby."

The red head flashed him a smile before resuming her studying.

"So how are you two doing?" Ocelot asked while taking a sip of his glass of water. "I know it must have been hard on you two after what happened a week ago. I know it was hard to do what you had to do."

Jaune sat down on the seat right across from his guest and nodded. He clutched the diamond necklace made from his surrogate brother's ashes and sighed. "Sometimes it's hard to believe he's gone. I had no choice."

"No one's blaming you for what you had to do for Boa." Ruby reminded him as she placed arms over him.

"The one who's to blame is Huey." Ocelot said. "He was the one who caused the Wolbachia to mutate. We already have the guys in R&D finding out everything."

Ruby lowered the book and looked at them. "What else has this man done? When I first met him he seemed like a nice man!"

"That's just a façade he's put on." Ocelot answered. "Deep down he is just a hypocrite who would just betray one person after another for his own personal gain. We monitor every communication that comes in and out of the base. He's been in contact with not only America, but some unknown source in the Middle East… and well you know who resides there."

Ruby's eyes widened in horror at the realization. "Phantom Task… he has been talking to those… monsters? But why?"

"He planned to sell the parasite to them." Jaune said in realization.

"But we stopped him." Ocelot assured them. "And he won't be leaving this place alive… not with everyone wanting to tear him to pieces. The man needs to die before he does any more harm to anyone."

Ruby of course sighed. "How could this have happened?"

Ocelot sadly shook his head. "That man can do a lot of harm to a lot of people. That's why he needs to die."

 **~oOo~**

"So how are you and Ruby doing?"

"We're doing good for the most part."

"I see." Ocelot smiled as they kept on walking. "You really love her, don't you?"

Jaune nodded and leaned on the railing. "More than ever."

The older man looked down and saw the AM D114-9 pistol and the Tornado-6 revolver, the former holstered on his lower back while the latter on his lower abdomen. Slung over to his left hip was his trusty AM MRS-4C carbine. He chuckled at the memory from four years ago, the memory of how eager Jaune was to learn how to use firearms. "How are those guns treating you?"

"Oh this?" Jaune turned over and took out the revolver, spinning it a little like a gunslinger before placing it back into its holster. "I love them… I feel a lot more natural using them as to what I had back then. Just a measly sword that once hung over the fireplace back home. I don't know what it was thinking back then but… I wouldn't be here today if I didn't make that decision of faking my transcripts."

"Faking transcripts…" Ocelot chuckled. "That took a lot of guts. Like infiltrating an enemy stronghold. But you are right, you are a better fighter with a knife then with a sword. A knife and sword are blades… but their uses are completely different. What you needed back then could fit you, and a knife was just that… well technically it's a machete but… you know what I mean."

"Yes sir."

"So what do you think is a fitting punishment for the 'good doctor'?"

Jaune frowned as he crossed his arms. "Killing him would be too easy."

"How so?"

"The bastard's practically asking to die… no… he needs to suffer. Take away the one thing he values most."

Ocelot grinned. "His legs."

"Exactly."

"You can be really cruel, you know that?"

Jaune grinned back at his firearms mentor. "I learned from the best."

Both men laughed for a moment, these two men shared a father-son relationship. He was the first man to ever teach him anything that he could get a grip on. No need for Aura or Semblances, just good old fashion gunpowder. Stubborn Boa handled his CQC lessons alongside Miller, but when it came to guns… he was a natural.

"So what's Remnant like?"

"A lot more mellow than Earth. But I bet the Faunus would love Japan."

"Those are the animal eared people, right?"

"Some of them have tails too."

"I'll be damned…" The older man crossed his arms and looked towards the south. "Would be nice to set up shop in Remnant. Build an FOB, expand our operations and prevent nukes from coming in or being built there."

Jaune nodded at the prospect. It would only be a matter of time until his past catches up to him and make contact with the people of Earth. And with that would come the sharing of technology, both harmless and harmful. Nuclear technology of course is not excluded from that. A Dust bomb, if made right, can have the same kind of yield as a nuclear weapon.

"That's not a bad idea."

"Sir!" A soldier came up rushing up to them.

"What is it?" Ocelot asked in a calm manner.

"We picked up something towards the south-west, looks like some kind of container vessel. Design is unlike anything…"

"Four years." Jaune snorted as he placed his hands on his hips. "It took them four years for them to finally decide to come through."

 **~oOo~**

 **Command Platform**

Jaune was within the command platform with the Ocelot and Miller. Big Boss was currently in the Middle East conducting a mission.

From what their Predator UAV has caught, it was a large container ship of unknown design with the initials SDC on each side.

"That's a Schnee Company freighter." Jaune said as he read the initials before pointing to the ship's deck where several bulbous objects were sitting on top. "Bullhead VTOL aircraft, kind of like Jet Ospreys but only meant to transport personnel or airlift cargo by tow cable. It's them alright… took them long enough."

"What are we expecting?" Miller asked the young Diamond Dog

"Team RWBY, without its leader Ruby Rose. Then there's Weiss Schnee, her family owns that ship. She uses a multi-action Dust rapier that can be used for multiple purposes."

"So the one with the money." Miller deduced.

"Blake Belladonna, a cat Faunus." Jaune continued. "She wields a kama/katana/pistol hybrid, her sheath acts as a second sword. She's the ninja of the group."

"Nimble as a cat." Ocelot nodded and grinned. "I'd like to take her on one of these days."

The blond snickered. "Cat fight?"

"You know it."

"Focus you two!" Miller scolded them and shook his head. "Who's the fourth?"

"Yang Xiao Long, Ruby's sister from another mother. She's the brawler, the more she takes hits, the more powerful she gets. She's the tank of the group. Each first letter of their name corresponds to the color, red, white, black, and yellow. Once you see them you'll know who's who."

"Who else is there?" Ocelot asked. Silence was the response from the blond at first but then his face softened when he saw the young man's guilty look. "Jaune?"

"My old team… JNPR."

Ocelot placed a hand on his shoulder and gently urged him on. "I know it's hard… but we need to know."

"Nora Valkyrie, hyperactive pancake-obsessive girl with a penchant for destruction. She has a hammer that doubles as a grenade launcher."

Miller's breath hitched. "Oh boy… we're gonna have a headache on our hands, I just know it."

"Then we have…" Jaune bit his lip. "Pyrrha Nikos."

Ocelot's grip on the blond's shoulder slightly tightened.

"Sword and shield, like me back then. But her sword can turn into both a javelin and a rifle. She's also the Fall Maiden, one with vast amounts of power. Out of everyone she is possibly the most powerful."

"And the last?"

"Lie Ren… gunblade wieldier, two automatic pistols with slashing bayonets. Pretty straightforward with his martial arts."

Miller crossed his arms. "Are they going to be a threat?"

"As long as they're not provoked." Jaune replied. "They're here for me, and only me. But their little expedition is no doubt sanctioned by the kingdoms, so this means their secondary mission is exploration. I only know the two teams are after me, but I'm unsure if there are others."

Miller nodded in understanding. "Then we'll have to go at that."

"Sir!" The UAV operator announced himself. "UAV has picked up several vessels heading towards the Remnant ship."

"Pirates."

One of the Diamond Dogs asked from their station. "All the way out here?"

"With international intervention almost nonexistent, this is pretty much our turf." Miller explained. "Bastards must have come from Somalia. Hoping to capture the large container ship."

"We're at least half an hour away by helicopter." Jaune told them. "A Viper and two Blackfoots will do for pirates. RWBY and JNPR can hold for an hour if move now."

"Make that three Blackfoots." Miller ordered. "Can't be too careful. We don't how many pirates are there. Ocelot, take Jaune with you and lead this operation. It's about time you get some air."

The gunslinger chuckled and nodded at the order. "You got it."

Both men left the command room and looked at each other. Both of them bore serious faces as this was a turning point in the younger man's life.

"You going to be okay, kid?"

Jaune nodded. "I've been waiting four years for this. The pain lingers… but it does not dictate me. I knew it was only a matter of time until my past catches up to me." He sighed and placed his hands on his hips. "No rest for the wicked."

 **~oOo~**

 **Somewhere south of the Seychelles**

 **Schnee Dust Company Freighter**

Several robotic guards fired at the pirate boats attacking them as bullets was exchanged. The three teams of hunters consisting of RWBY, what was left of JNPR, and SSSN, fought off the raiders as they boarded the front of the ship. They could not risk using the bullheads as they weren't armed so they had to fend them off on foot. The problem was that these pirates didn't have Aura, so that meant if they received a direct hit they were dead. That in itself was also a problem because huntsmen were taught to protect people, not kill them.

So the hesitation was there. This meant that the robotic guards the freighter had on board had to do most of the work.

Blake on the other hand just kept on shooting. She didn't want to risk getting herself out in the open and just try to rip these people apart. With her history she had no qualms in shedding blood as she had done it before. Ignoring the horrified looks of her friends and teammates she just kept on shooting. Bloodshed was inevitable, so she knew that she had to do what was necessary. She was the only one capable of killing people without giving it a second thought. It was because of the hesitation of the huntsmen that Cinder Fall and her lackeys were still at large. Reports say that they left the veil and passed through the threshold.

The problem was that they had no idea what was beyond the veil and assumed that the land was the same as theirs.

How wrong they were.

Their first encounter with the natives had to be pirates. What luck…

"You have to fight back!" Blake barked at her hesitant friends. Even Yang showed apprehension when she fired her shotgun shells, but she only did so to try and scare off the attackers, unfortunately her plan wasn't working.

"But they're people!" Pyrrha cried out.

"They are planning to kill us!" The cat Faunus retorted as she fired off a few more rounds before ducking back into cover. "Pyrrha, you're the Fall Maiden for Oum's sakes!"

"I can't just use my powers to hurt people, Blake!"

Blake huffed and looked at Weiss who erected an ice wall. She knew that her white-haired friend didn't have the stomach to shed blood, especially towards humans. But at least she was doing something useful with her abilities. Weiss then ducked down and took a deep breath.

"Blake, only you know how to do this! We're not trained to-"

"I know… but we don't really have a choice in the matter." Blake reminded them. "These people are out to kill us. I know they don't have Aura, I know that if we fight back they will die."

The cat Faunus looked at her boyfriend Sun and gave him a sad look. He knew very well about her history.

One of the pirates then called out to his comrades in a language they didn't know of. But from the way he moved his body and arms he was telling them to move forward and attack. The cheers rang out and they all went out of cover while firing their weapons in a wild manner, bullets going in every direction. They were acting like a bunch of uncivilized people, but it was to be expected since they were pirates. But even by now the robotic guards have been either destroyed or heavily damaged.

Pyrrha bit her lip and rested her weapon on the metallic crate, shakily aiming her weapon at them. Tears welled in her eyes as she was about to commit something she thought she would never do. But before she could even pull the trigger, a shot rang out in the distance. A single bullet impacting the lead pirate's head. Said pirate then lifelessly slumped down onto the floor, causing everyone, sans Blake, to look on in horror. Their heads turned and heard the sounds of air being beat into submission. They saw four aircraft similar to that of a Bullhead, but they had rotor blades on top that allowed them the ability to fly. In them were people with firearms, all of them wearing similar uniforms. These people were military, no doubt about it. In one of the aircraft though was a white-haired man man wearing a brown duster jacket, cowboy boots with spurs, and red scarf. With him were several uniformed men with red berets, with them as well was a hooded soldier with a black mask covering his face. In his hands was a sniper rifle, indicating that he was the one who fired that shot.

The other aircraft then started firing with their rapid firing weapons, cutting through the several hundred pirates that infested these waters. The amount of blood caused the huntsmen and huntresses to grimace at the sight.

Stowing the sniper rifle away into the aircraft, the vehicle lowered itself and he jumped off, landing onto the platform in a crouched position with what appeared to be an assault rifle slung on his left hip. In quick succession he raised his weapon and fired in consecutive bursts at the pirates, killing them with little to no effort. At the same time the soldiers rappelled down on ropes and joined the fray while medical teams approached the hunters.

"Is everyone alright?" One of them asked with an accent that reminded them of Velvet.

Weiss looked at them and nodded. "Who are you people?"

"We're Diamond Dogs." Another replied. "But we'll explain more of that later."

By then the brown coated man got on the floor and unleashed a hail of bullets from his revolvers. It was by this time the pirates started to feel fear at the sight of these people. The looks on their eyes told it all, these men who came to help them were feared. More so the one standing in the center, the sharpshooter who made the shot. He stood in the middle, surrounded by the men hesitant to even approach him.

All the pirates muttered was… Jackal…

"Jackal?" Blake narrowed her eyes as the rest of her friends heard the words coming out of the pirates' mouths.

"Why are they calling him Jackal?" Pyrrha asked after finally having calmed down.

The Diamond Dog medic pointed to the small blade the 'Jackal' unsheathed, a beautiful black coated blade with gray edges. "In the battlefield he is known as the Jackal, one who never lets go of his prey."

The pirates cried out as they all attacked with their weapons. His blade glowed for a moment as he moved forward and danced acrobatically around the hail of bullets. With his fifteen inch long blade he spun around to the back of his first victim and slit the man's throat wide open, a gush of blood spitting out like a fountain, and all the others can do was watch. The Diamond Dogs cheering the Jackal on while the teams from Remnant looked on in horror at the grueling scene.

The Jackal did not stop there and moved to his next target, he jabbed the blade right below the pirate's underarm. He then unholstered a revolver and spun it a few times before aiming it at another's head. Released the blade from the pirate's body, he pulled the trigger and fired a round straight through the other's head. He then ducked his head when another tried to hit him with the butt of an AK-47, the Jackal spun his blade around and dove it straight through the pirate's throat. Kicking him away he spun his whole body around and raised his assault rifle towards the rest of his enemies. He pulled the trigger and fired off a few bursts from the weapon, the bullets making contact and going through another, he snapped the weapon to his left and right, firing burst after burst after burst. The amount of dead bodies just kept on piling up as the floor was now stained with the pool of their blood.

His hand then went behind his back and unholstered a different kind of pistol, one with a long magazine. He aimed it at his next target and unleashed a hail of armor-piercing 9mm rounds. But the pirates just kept on coming, intent on taking down the Jackal and claim the bounty on his head. He winded his lower body and delivered a reverse hook kick, the back of his boot landing on one of the other pirate's temple. The force had essentially caused a brain hemorrhage and killed him due to internal bleeding. He unsheathed his blade once more and slashed another's neck open, causing more blood to spill out like a fountain.

The death hadn't stopped there. Pyrrha could only look on and stare at the Jackal. There was something about him that felt familiar… the air around him felt familiar. It was there she noticed something different about the man's lower right arm. It felt a little unnatural with the way it moved. She flinched when the Jackal used his right arm to grab hold of a pirate's throat before snapping it in two.

"This guy's a monster." Neptune said while holding Weiss close to him.

One of the Diamond Dogs chuckled. "That's what his enemies say before they die."

Ren looked at the fight and saw the types of martial arts this Jackal was utilizing. It was a combination of those he had never seen before, but the few he ones he used were the ones he recognized. It was like the one he was taught. Who is this guy? And why does he feel so familiar?

"Impressive, huh?"

Ren turned around to see the brown coated man. "Who are you people? Are you military?"

The older man nodded. "In a way we are. I'm Ocelot, the commander of the unit dispatched to help you guys."

"Ocelot… like the cat?"

Ocelot chuckled and nodded. "That's right."

"So why is he called the Jackal?"

The revolver wielding man crossed his arms and just watched. "That there is pretty simple. One: He does not show any mercy to his enemies. And two: he is someone who does not let go of his prey. Jackal is my one of my most gifted students. I, alongside other instructors, turned him into the man he is today. He's only been with us for four years and he's progressed extremely well."

"You train people how to kill!?" Pyrrha gasped and glared at the man.

"We're soldiers, kid." Ocelot retorted. "I don't expect people like you to understand, Miss Nikos."

All eyes were now on him as the people of Remnant looked at him with shock.

"How do you know my name?"

"A certain… golden boy… told us about you guys."

Pyrrha stood up and walked up to him. "Jaune… you know Jaune? Where is he!?"

"Calm down, Miss Nikos." Ocelot gently patted her on the shoulder. "Calm down. He's doing quite alright. But now is not the time for you to lose your composure. So I would ask that you calm down."

Up in the air an AH-1Z Viper was gunning down any retreating pirate boats while the other helicopters were on station and landing on the clear areas of the large freighter. The ship was quite large, but that was probably for the purpose of transporting the Bullheads. While the Jackal finished off the remaining pirates, the Diamond Dogs secured the area and guided the remainder of the bridge crew to their Mother Base in the Seychelles.

The last pirate, unable to walk because of his wounded legs, tried to crawl away from the Jackal that butchered his comrades. He was on the brink of tears and frantically tried to move away. But he was far too wounded to even get far. The Jackal Black walked up to him and rolled him over, making him lie on his back. He then placed his boot over him to prevent him from moving any further and aimed his weapon at his head.

"What is he doing-!?" Pyrrha tried to intervene but one of the soldiers stopped her.

"Don't kid… we have our orders. All pirates are to be eliminated. They don't get any clemency around here."

"But-"

The little red riding hood was silenced by her older sister with a hug from the back as the soldiers began cleaning up the area. The bodies of the dead pirates being thrown into the sea for the sharks to feast on.

"Jaune told us everything he knew about Remnant." Ocelot explained as his men got to work. "Told us that your world is a lot more mellow than ours."

"So we are in a different world." Weiss whispered with her blue-haired boyfriend right beside her. "And what do you mean 'much more mellow'?"

"Exactly just that." The revolver wielding man replied. "Our world is in a bit of a pinch with a major war economy going on. Every third-world country is in a state of war. But more will be explained once we head back to Mother Base."

Wiping the blood off his combat blade, he tucked it back into its sheath and approached Ocelot.

"Any sign of 'them' involved in this?"

Jackal shook his head.

Ocelot scratched his chin and hummed. "So this is just some typical pirate raid gone horribly wrong. Good work out there, Jackal. And you're shooting… pretty good.

That earned the masked soldier a snort.

"Head back to the chopper and look out for any more pirate boats."

Jackal nodded and did as ordered. He boarded a helicopter that immediately took off and circled around the moving ship in a five kilometre radius.

"Is he always so silent?" Blake asked.

Ocelot shrugged. "Sometimes." The man then turned to his radio and contacted one of his men. "Sierra 2, what's the status on the ship's crew?"

 **[No fatalities and those that were wounded are already being treated. We're guiding the ship to Mother Base as we speak.]**

The Ocelot Unit commander nodded, pleased with the work they had accomplished. "Alright, good work. Keep your guard up, people! Work isn't done until we reach home!"

 **~oOo~**

Morale among the hunters was low. They had just witnessed death at the hands of people. The only time Remnant has ever shed blood between people was during the Great War and the Faunus War. Remnant of course had put that past behind but it seems this world still had its problems. Instead of race it was between ideals, beliefs, or ethnicity. They had just walked into an extremely violent world without ever being truly prepared.

As the ship got closer to its destination. The group gasped at the sight. A massive fortress in the middle of the sea. They could see armored vehicles stationed on the massive platforms with many soldiers manning their posts. All eyes were now on them as the ship approached the center of the Mother Base. All around the buildings, they could see the emblem of a diamond with a dog's head over it. This was the home of the Diamond Dogs. But who are the Diamond Dogs?

"Welcome to Mother Base!"

"I would like to thank you for helping us, Commander Ocelot." Professor Peter Port of Beacon Academy shook the man's hand. "Those pirates certainly caught us off guard. We came ill prepared. Our world isn't exactly used to bloodshed these days."

"Quite alright, Professor Port." The revolver wielding commander of the Ocelot Unit replied in kind. "I'm just glad we made it in time."

The mustached history professor and veteran huntsman nodded before turning towards the helicopter where the Jackal was in. "That is quite the student you have there."

"More like protégé." Ocelot corrected. "I took him in four years ago. Taught him everything I knew. He's the son I never had. First time I saw him he was just a wandering soul in search for purpose. He needed a reason to live… and the Diamond Dogs gave him that. Everyone here is family to him."

"If I am ask, what are the Diamond Dogs?"

"We are a private military company, or PMC for short." The revolver wielding man replied.

Port's eyebrows rose. "Oh? A private military company you say? Don't you mean mercenaries?"

"One in the same." Ocelot shrugged while coordinating with the docking procedures. "But we prefer the term PMC as it sounds much more formal. And we are not a bunch of disorganized fools. We are a people that follow our own ideals. Free from the abuse of governments who follow selfish agendas. This is our Outer Heaven…"

"Outer Heaven." Port rubbed his mustache. "Most interesting. I also must apologize if my students might be disapproving of your methods. They are hunters… not soldiers."

"I completely understand, professor." Ocelot said in an understanding and calm tone. "Not many people agree with what we do. I'll be blunt here… we are people who do the devil's work."

"Not many people would even admit that." Port said. "I may be a huntsman but even I had my fair share of battles with people who wish me dead."

 **~oOo~**

"You can't really be saying that you agree with what they do!"

"I didn't say that." Ren responded in a calm tone as Pyrrha looked at him with heated eyes. "I'm just saying that they're soldiers. It's part of their job. Soldiers and huntsmen are completely different people. What I'm worried about is what that Ocelot person said… about Jaune with them."

"No…" Pyrrha shook her head. "Jaune would never…"

"And yet we never expected Jaune to just leave with saying any real goodbye." All the gunblade wielder got as a response to his retort was silence from the Fall Maiden.

"You think he's having nice pancakes?" Nora asked in a rather quiet tone.

Ren rubbed her back and nodded. "I think he is, Nora."

The sound of chains securing the ship was an indicator that the freighter had finally docked. The three teams then emerged from the bowels of the ship and saw the massive fortress in the sea. The platforms were huge with the many soldiers keeping a close eye on them. What worried them was what Professor Port had informed them of what and who the Diamond Dogs are.

A private military company, or if one would choose a cruder term, they are mercenaries. An extremely well-equipped mercenary company.

"This doesn't make any sense." Weiss thought aloud with her arms crossed. "How can a bunch of mercenaries get this much hardware?"

"We are in a different world." Yang told her. "I mean since we are in a different world… wouldn't that mean that things are done differently here? Professor Port did say that the Ocelot guy told him that their world isn't… uh… what's the word… stable?"

"It still concerns me that a bunch of mercenaries are this powerful. General Ironwood will NOT like this, not one bit."

"No use in worrying about it now, Snow Angel." Neptune quietly said while placing his arm around her waist, to which she laid her head on his shoulder. "Right now we got a certain 'golden boy' to find. His family is already worried as it is."

"To think he's the only son of the great Arc family…"

"People come in all shapes and sizes, Snow Angel."

"Oh Oum…" Yang whispered in shock as her eyes were on a certain blond young man disembarking from the aircraft. The same aircraft the Jackal had ridden. She could not believe her eyes as to who she was looking at.

Pyrrha had the same expression on her face when she turned to see at who Yang was looking at. That golden hair, those blue eyes. This did not make any sense. He was one of them. And not only that he was that soldier who butchered those pirates. No… that can't be. He shouldn't be… Killing all those people, that's not him.

"Dear Oum." Ren grimaced. "He was the one that killed all those pirates."

"I did not see that coming." Sun said with Blake just standing there with an emotionless look. "There's just no way."

But it was him, wearing that forest camo hooded battle dress. His weapon to his left hip with the same revolver holstered on his lower abdomen. His mask was down so his face there for them to see. And what's more was that he was now wearing the same red beret as the rest of the Ocelot Unit Port told them about. From what Ocelot had told Port, they were an elite unit of 'special forces', conducting dangerous missions that no normal soldier is capable of doing.

Pyrrha was about to approach him and ask questions but was stopped by the sight of a beautiful girl with long red hair tied into a loose ponytail and silver eyes running up to the blond soldier. She had a look of both elation and relief. For a moment the guys in the group thought she was an angel.

"Jaune!" The mysterious girl said as she threw her arms around him, with him doing the same thing as he happily wrapped his arms around his waist. Both of them smiled lovingly at each other with their foreheads pressed against each other. "You didn't say anything about a mission today."

"It was so sudden." He replied. "I didn't get enough time to tell you, I'm sorry."

The girl let out a sigh filled with relief. "At least you're alright."

The soldier then lowered his head even further and pressed his lips against hers in a sweet loving kiss.

Everyone saw this, the soldiers around them let out wolf howls, whistles, and cheers. The others… Pyrrha just stared on in disbelief at the sight with her friends doing the same.

Yang on the other hand gaped at the scene. She was seeing Jaune being all lovey-dovey with… "WHAT!? But… WHAT!?"

"Dude…" Neptune whispered to his team leader.

The monkey Faunus just nodded and turned his attention to the rest of the group, specifically Pyrrha. "Not good…"

Nora looked at Pyrrha and nudged her a little. "Pyrrha… are you okay? Pyrrha?"

The red head dropped her shield and sword, both items impacting the floor with a thud that, to her, was loud.

Meanwhile there was a commotion right up ahead as the soldiers let out cries of what appeared to be anger as they headed for one of the warehouses on the base's main platform. The soldier's eyes widened before going into anger as he grabbed the girl's hand and followed the soldiers into the building.

Pyrrha fell to her knees as she watched him go and could only utter his name. "J-Jaune?"

 **~oOo~**

"Boss, you there?" The voice of Kazuhira Miller was heard through the radio. "We have a problem. The staff have found out everything that Emmerich's been up to. They're right on the edge. I need you to intervene before things get out of control. Get back to Mother Base ASAP."

 **NA: Yikes… double yikes… triple yikes… this could go on for a very long time.**


	3. Chapter 3

**NA: Here we are once again! We will have 'evil' PMCs like Desperado and World Marshal. And of course a certain… senator. Nanomachines, son!**

 **So as you all aware, a lot of shit happened in the last episode of RWBY, and it nearly wrecked my mojo for writing this. But fret not! This is fanfiction! And that means needing to deviate from canon. And don't worry, I have something in store for Torchwick later on.**

 **~oOo~**

 **Mother Base, Seychelles**

 **Command Platform – Warehouse 1**

How could it have come to this?

That was the question that has been roaming through the mind of Pyrrha Nikos as she and her friends were witnessing a trial on a man accused of not only being responsible for the deaths of more than a hundred Diamond Dogs a week ago, but also for something that had happened nine years ago. They could see the hateful eyes of the soldiers as they peered towards the scientist who was down his knees with his hands cuffed behind his back. Beside him on the floor was an exoskeleton that helped him walk due to health problems with his legs.

Before any of the hunter teams could say anything, Port intervened.

"I would advise that none of you interfere." The mustached professor told them in a quiet tone. "We are simply witnessing one of this world's many methods of putting someone on trial for a heinous crime. This man may not look like it but I have been shown evidence of his actions. We are foreigners, we have no right in interfering with their business."

As much as they didn't think this was right, Port had a point. They looked down and saw Jaune speaking with some of the soldiers while Ruby, who apparently was his girlfriend, was sitting on a chair by the wall. But what bothered them the most was how they had been treating the accused, like he was nothing but scum. It was clear that everyone in this room hated him. But what he did, they were about to find out.

Ocelot stepped forward and addressed the crowd. "Nine years ago, this man had acted as an accomplice to the attack on the original Mother Base. He then provided support to Skull Face. Conspiring with Liquid through communication, he repaired Sahelanthropus in secret so that he could have it stolen from under our noses. His 'research materials' caused the leak in the quarantine facility. Which in turn caused the Wolbachia mutation, letting the parasites off their chains."

An eerie silence shrouded the entire room as many of the soldiers mourned the losses of their comrades. Jaune gritted his teeth and clenched his fists, his anger was there for all to see.

"We lost a lot of good men." Ocelot continued. "He also stands accused… of murdering one of his own family. Hiding the body."

The girls of RWBY and JNPR silently gasped.

"I haven't killed anyone!" Huey cried out in protest. "The rest is all wrong, too! The inspection was supposed to help everyone! I sacrificed myself for my companions just as much as any of you… Why won't you believe me?!"

Blake looked at the pitiful man and could practically see the lies he has built up. She of course understood treachery and betrayal, something she had lived all throughout during her life in the White Fang before leaving. But she decided to stay quiet and just observe.

Sun placed an arm around her waist. "Babe?"

"It's nothing, Sun."

Miller walked forward and looked at the accused with disgust. "The prosecution calls a witness!"

The sound of machine churning up was heard by all as a crane pulled up a large black cylinder. The soldiers who were in its path willingly gave way for it to come forward.

"Strangelove's gravestone." Miller announced. "Haunted by her phantom."

"It's just a machine…" Huey said in dismissal.

The machine then came to life with red lights as it played a recording. The girls of RWBY nearly jumped at the sudden sound of banging coming from it as the voice of a woman echoed.

" **OPEN THIS THING! HUEY! DAMN IT HUEY! OPEN IT NOW!"**

All the women in the room had their hands up to their mouths in horror. Jaune's girlfriend was the one who was shocked the most as she knew the woman's voice.

" **Please…"** The woman's voice weakened as she was now gasping for air. **"Let me out…"**

Ruby looked away as she listened to the woman's final moments. How could this man do such a thing?

" **Kill me…"**

"My word." Port whispered. "Why would he…"

"I think we're about to find out." Blake told them.

"Blake, how can you remain calm after hearing that?"

All the cat Faunus did was raise an eyebrow at Weiss' question, causing her to flush in embarrassment as she remembered her prior history before coming to Beacon.

"It recorded it all." Miller said as he threw a bunch of photos onto the floor, pictures of Strangelove with a silver-haired girl no older than ten. "Everything… Everything you did living together."

Huey could not believe his eyes when he heard the man's words. "How could a machine…?"

"You forced your own granddaughter, your son's adoptive daughter, into the cockpit of a metal gear. A test subject."

"Sunny."

"He what?" Ruby could not believe what she had just heard as her sister just stared.

"And you wonder why your son never speaks to you again."

"Hal."

"Her grandmother had to send her back. And for that you locked her up in that coffin."

"NO!" Huey denied. "She… she did it herself. It was suicide! And even if I did. What right do you have?"

Yang frowned and clenched her fists. "Bastard…"

"There's more." Miller continued on with the evidence. "We have you to tell us everything you've done – everything you've thought – all this time."

Huey in turn just shook his head in denial.

"Nine years ago!" Miller barked. "You agreed to the 'inspection' in return for Phantom Task's guarantee that you'd be spared."

"I thought it was real!" The scientist cried out, futily trying to prove his innocence.

Miller then walked up to him and glared at the man. "We've reviewed into everything else that's happened since you arrived here."

"Please." Huey begged him to reconsider.

"GUILTY!" The man wearing sunglasses barked out. "All counts."

The moment he stomped his foot, all hell broke loose as the soldiers cried out for his punishment. Pyrrha of course could not believe the words that came out of Jaune's mouth.

"KILL HIM!" The blond Diamond Dog cried out, followed by the same cries from his comrades.

"KILL HIM!"

"KILL HIM!"

"KILL THAT SON OF A BITCH!"

"KILL HIM!"

"KILL HIM!"

"KILL HIM!"

All these words that came out of their mouths. RWBY, JNPR, and SSSN, all heard their cries with wide eyes. These people, including their long lost friend Jaune, were crying out for blood. They could not believe the words that came out of Jaune's mouth. That kind, naïve, Jaune…

 ***BANG***

A shot rang out and all eyes were on Ocelot as he fired a shot into the air to gain their attention and silence them. Miller then saw this as an opportunity to once again speak.

"We exist outside the law." He then turned to Big Boss. "Boss… just give the order. We'll handle the rest."

"They can't be serious." Pyrrha whispered.

Nora on the other hand got scared, something she never felt. She hid behind Ren and hugged him.

Big Boss stepped forward, though his face held no emotion, his eyes held anger. "Kaz… you were right… he's not one of us."

"Snake…" Huey was on the brink of tears and tried to beg for mercy.

"What should we do?"

"I want to know who exactly he has been in contact with." The leader of the Diamond Dog said in a calm and composed attitude. "I want to know everything. Have R&D take his research, we can't allow it to go to waste."

"Please… I'm begging you…"

Big Boss turned to Ocelot. "Everything he knows. Then dispose of him."

Ocelot nodded. "Yes Boss. Jaune…"

"With pleasure." Jaune made a vicious grin as he forcefully grabbed Huey's arm and dragged him towards the back door.

"No wait!" Huey cried out. "Please… it's not my fault! Snake! I'm innocent! You're the muderers! There'd have been no inspection if it weren't for your precious nuke! I risked my life trying to save you all! How can you do this?!"

All the rest of the Diamond Dogs did was laugh at him as he went into hysterics. Pyrrha and her friends on the other hand could only look at Jaune's vicious look as he dragged the struggling man towards the door.

"It's not my fault…" Huey broke down as the blond dragged him through the door.

"You can't discard your phantoms forever, Doctor." Ocelot said as he followed Jaune out the door.

Once the door closed, Big Boss turned to his men. "Everyone else, dismissed."

Satisfied with the outcome, the soldiers dispersed and made their way through the other door. Pyrrha wanted to follow Jaune but Port stopped him. "Professor?"

"You mustn't, Miss Nikos."

"But-"

"You will only make things worse. I'm afraid that is not the Jaune Arc we know."

"I refuse to believe that."

"Did you see his face?" Blake spoke up. "His eyes… they reminded me of Adam. He killed those pirates without even a second thought, every single one of them. That's not the Jaune we knew."

"No…" Pyrrha fell to her knees and tried to hold back her tears. She looked on and saw Ruby, who was with Jaune, being escorted out by Miller and Big Boss. His… girlfriend. "No…"

How could it have come to this? That was the question that kept roaming in her mind.

 **Diamond Dogs**

 **Chapter 3: Coming to Terms**

 **Command Platform – Room 101**

Jaune winded up a crank powered machine connected to too metallic prods. He winded it a few times before gently holding the prods. Both rods tapped, causing a massive spark to come between them. He walked up to Ocelot and a currently shirtless Huey tied to a chair and a black cloth bag over his head.

"We'll ask you again, Doctor." The gunslinger spoke in a sinister tone. "Who else were you in contact with?"

"I-I…" Huey shivered. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Ocelot sighed before nodding to the blond. Jaune then pressed the electrified prods forward to the Doctor's chest, causing his entire body violently convulse at the amount of electricity flowing through his body. Huey screamed at the amount of pain flowing through him before gasping after the blond pulled back.

"Ugh... p-please…"

"We can do this all day, Doctor. All you have to do for this to end is to tell us who you were contacting. You can't lie to us, we have been monitoring every communication in and out of Mother Base."

Huey just whimpered and hug his covered head. "Why me…?"

Ocelot nodded to the blond once more. Jaune cranked the machine around seven to ten revolutions and resumed electrocuting the man through the contact to the chest. All that was heard next was the Doctor's shaky screams as massive amounts of electricity once again coursed through his veins.

"Now… who were you contacting…"

"I… I don't know w- grrgh!"

Jaune grabbed the man's head and pointed it upwards. He then grabbed a canteen and poured water over his covered face, the cloth of the bag soaking up the water. All Huey could do was struggle as he felt the sensation of drowning with the water in the cloth covering his mouth and nose.

Behind the glass in the room were Miller, and surprisingly, Professor Peter Port. The former bearing sad eyes that his former student in Beacon had become… this.

"To think that the kind and naïve Jaune Arc would become this."

"He's doing what is necessary." Miller said as the interrogation continued "Are you sure you wish to continue watching this? This doesn't really concern you."

"I wish to know more about your world, Mister Miller. I believe observing this is necessary. I am no stranger to interrogations. It just saddens me that a young man like Jaune is doing this."

"Jaune's been wanting to do this for a while." The blond man said as he adjusted his sunglasses. "What he's doing is just taking out his anger towards the man responsible for the death of more than a hundred of our men. One of them happened to be an older-brother figure to him. Every member of Diamond Dogs is family, and he took that to heart."

"If Pyrrha saw this she would be heartbroken to see what he had become."

"Ah yes… the Fall Maiden."

The Professor's eyebrows rose. "You…"

"Jaune filled us in the moment we detected your ship."

The Professor of Beacon Academy sighed. "I guess I know now where young Jaune's loyalties lie. His family back home will be distraught once the news reaches them. I remember during his first class, he was always… lacking."

"He just needed to be in the right environment." Miller said. "He just needed to find something else that could make him feel alive."

"And being a soldier was that solution."

Miller nodded as Jaune through Huey to the floor. Ocelot knelt down and just listened to whatever the Doctor was spilling. "Ocelot practically took Jaune in the day we found him. He taught him everything he knew. Aside from me teaching him how to fight in close quarters combat, Ocelot was the one who mostly oversaw his training and growth. Through that they formed a sort of father-son bond. They got along really well."

That would certainly make the patriarch of the Arc family unhappy. And it would also cause friction between Jaune and his real father. All Port knew was that the Arc family had been extremely worried about him ever since he vanished four years ago. His sisters had been searching high and low for his whereabouts, and his mother had been raving on the police… heck she even went to Ironwood and 'asked' that she put the army on high alert. His father on the other hand had dropped down into depression and barely spoke to anyone outside his family. The great and prestigious Arc family had taken a hit they can never fully recover from.

And if they saw what Jaune is now, their resolve would definitely shatter. But still, he will need to report his findings back to Beacon.

"Mister Miller." Port turned to the co-commander of Diamond Dogs. "I would like to entrust the care of my students to you while I report my findings back to Remnant. It is my job to let them know that I found Jaune, no matter how painful it may be for them."

"When will you leave?"

"In a day or two." The Professor replied. "But first I must record a bit of his life here, if that is alright with you."

Miller nodded. "Of course. But I must ask that you be discreet."

Port nodded in return. "I will, and thank you."

The door opened with Jaune and Ocelot coming through, both of them having pleased looks on their faces.

"Did he reveal anything?"

Jaune nodded and grinned. "He was definitely in contact with Phantom Task AND the CIA. It looks the good doctor has been involved in development of the US's IS program. He was hoping that he would transmit Sahelanthropus's data to them, but we were of course able to intercept it."

Miller nodded. "What else?"

"He also attempted to contact IS Academy." Ocelot informed him. "But we intercepted it and prevented it."

Miller sighed. "So he was going to try and rat us out?"

"More like sell Sahelantropus's data to them." Jaune said. "That's all we could get out of him. The rest is what we already know. Bastard started squirming out everything once I persuaded him enough."

Miller nodded. "Good work, and it seems the Doctor has outlived his usefulness."

Port frowned. "Is killing him really necessary? That man is defenseless."

Jaune scoffed. "He has knowledge to build the most powerful weapons. He's too dangerous to be kept alive or let go. He WILL do anything for his own personal gain, killing more than a hundred of our men is proof enough. Or should I mention the fact that he killed his own wife?"

Port relented with a sigh. "I suppose I cannot fault your argument. I just wish there was another way. You've changed, Jaune."

"These four years have been good to me, Professor." The blond replied as he fiddled with his diamond necklace. "I am where I should be. I was never huntsman material to begin with."

"I suppose so." The Professor said with a sad smile. "But it is good to see you again, Jaune."

"Yeah…" Jaune then went through the door once more and approached the barely conscious Huey Emmerich who was still begging for him to spare his life.

Port closed his eyes and looked away when he saw the blond draw his revolver and point it at defenceless man. The moment he looked away he heard the gun go off with a loud bang. How was he going to tell the people back home of what he saw? This was not going to be easy for the Arc family, not one bit.

 **~oOo~**

Emerging from the stairwell of the command platform, Jaune didn't waste any time as he went straight for his home in one of the residential platforms as it was now getting late with the moon high up in the sky. As he entered his home he was welcomed by a concerned Ruby, sitting on their bed. Her hands were joined over her abdomen with her head slightly tilted, and her eyes looked at him, piercing through him like daggers.

"He's dead, isn't he?" She asked in a silent tone.

Jaune nodded slowly.

"Are you alright?"

He didn't move for a moment as he closed his and knelt down right in front of him. He rested his head on her lap as his arms went around her waist. His silence could be read by her like an open book, she knew exactly what he was feeling. Killing him brought him no pleasure aside from doing what was necessary, if he were to be allowed to live he would have most likely caused more innocent deaths. She just held him close and rested his head on her bosom, stroking his soft golden hair.

"He won't be harming anyone anymore." She quietly said as they lay on their bed.

"I still feel empty." Jaune finally spoke. "I killed him… and I felt nothing. And then there's the fact that my old friends are here. I look at them and I feel happy, but I also feel sad at the same time. I love the life I'm living now, but I just can't help but feel that a part of me wants to go back and see my family again."

"There is nothing wrong with visiting your family." Ruby said while still stroking his soft hair. "You said it yourself: family is important."

He snickers and makes her yelp when he rolls them over. He was now lying on his back while his lover on his chest. "Yeah I did say that didn't I?"

The red-haired beauty pouts at his snickering face. "At least warn me first." But she was then silenced by his kiss, in return she closed her eyes and returned it with her hands still roaming his hair.

"I love you, Ruby."

"I love you too, Jaune."

 **Next Day**

With the light of the sun piercing through the window of their home, Ruby shifted her lithe frame and felt the beating heart of her lover. She slowly opened her eyes to see Jaune's bare chest and his sleeping face. She smiled and remembered that they had just shared a night of passion last night with the cover of their bed shielding their nakedness. She just smiled and cuddled closer, nuzzling her face over the crook of his neck while placing a few kisses before going back to resting her head back down. This is the life they could have ever asked for.

His bionic hand then went up to her shoulder and she looked up to see him smiling at her. He leans over and gives her a kiss that he just can't get enough of. "Good morning."

Ruby giggles and tilts her head while smiling back. "It is now."

The phone on the side table started ringing and Jaune reached for it. Sliding his finger on the touch screen, he placed it over his ear. "Yeah? Yeah… I'm good. Mhmm… Yeah… I'll be there in 30. See you there."

Ruby gave him a sad smile, disappointed that the moment didn't last long. "Work?"

"I'm sorry."

She shakes her head. "Don't be, I know you are a busy man."

He rolls to his side and runs his hands down her beautiful naked frame before giving her a passionate kiss. "I'll make it up to you tonight, okay?"

 **~oOo~**

Fully dressed in his BDU, he grabbed a few sandwiches from the mess hall before making his way to the R&D Platform where, to no surprise, his old friends from Remnant were there waiting. He inwardly chuckled at the sight of a certain orange-haired girl waving at him.

"Morning fearless leader!" Nora said through the pancakes stuffed in her mouth. "They make great pancakes here!"

Jaune shook his head. "Morning guys…" He looked to his right and saw the red-haired Fall Maiden. "Hey Pyrrha."

Pyrrha went up to him and gave him a tight hug.

The blond sighed and patted her back with his bionic arm. "Yeah… it's good to see you too."

Pyrrha's eyes shot up at the feeling his… right hand… She immediately parted and grabbed hold of it. "Your…"

"I got a new one to replace the one I lost four years ago." Jaune said as he flexed it. "Fully functional bionic arm. It took me a while to get used to it… but it's better than not having an arm to begin with."

"Jaune…"

"I'm fine." The blond reassured. "I've spent the last four years in active combat, I'm not helpless. Not anymore. Now… if you'll excuse me I need to report to my CO."

Walking past the rest of them while giving them a courtesy nod, Pyrrha stood there. Her eyes started welling with fluid as she watched her first love walk away. Her hands trembled and her legs began to lose strength, but Weiss was right beside her and held her.

"Pyrrha, are you okay?"

"M'okay…" The red head mumbled through her whimpers.

"It doesn't look like you're fine." Blake said as she fully knew what Pyrrha was going through. Heartbreak was never an easy thing, especially when it was about her first love. "Pyrrha…"

"I-I s-said I'm f-fine!" The red head insisted as she walked in the opposite direction, her hands now wiping the tears that refused to stop shedding.

Weiss frowned and was about to go after Jaune when Yang stopped her. "Yang, let me go!"

"I don't think it's a good idea to do that, Weiss."

"Why not!? He-"

"We know." Yang gave her white-haired friend a hard look. "But it's not that simple. Jaune's with my sister of all people, you can't just tell him to break up with her just to be with Pyrrha. It doesn't work that way."

"But-"

"Just leave them alone for now." The blonde brawler told her in a gentle tone. "I also wanna have a word with him, just not now."

 **~oOo~**

A certain Pembroke Welsh Corgi was playfully wagging his little tail at DD who was currently wearing a Fulton vest designed for medium to large dogs. The wolf-dog hybrid on the other hand just tilted his head and looked at the overly cheerful Corgi who had his tongue out and barked. DD just huffed before spotting Jaune entering the room.

"Hey DD..." Jaune greeted the Diamond Dog and patted him before turning to see another dog. "And… Zwei!?"

Zwei barked happily and leaped up into the blond's arms, repeatedly licking him on the face.

"Zwei, what are you doing here?"

"You know this dog?" Ocelot walked in.

"Sir!" The blond immediately got back on his feet and saluted him. "And yes sir… Zwei belongs to Ruby and Yang. He must have wondered off when he saw DD. He's completely trained though. I've seen him take down a Grimm with little effort."

Ocelot looked at the innocent looking Corgi and at first couldn't believe it. "He has an Aura, doesn't he?"

Jaune nodded and set Zwei back down onto the floor beside DD. "Yes sir, he does. So what was I called here for?"

The gunslinger then turned to the computer screen on the wall and pressed a button the remote. "Ever since we extracted information from Doctor Emmerich, we pieced a few of the information we have gathered along with his."

"What else?"

"Several more IS have been stolen by an unknown assailant. No doubt Phantom Task is up to something, but what it is exactly… we still don't know."

"And the countries that got robbed still won't reveal that they lost an IS?"

Ocelot nodded. "If they revealed what happened they would be put on a serious disadvantage. It would mean a massive loss on the national defense side."

Jaune scoffed. "They're so heavily reliant on having an IS defend their country they have no idea what WE have been up to."

"Exactly." The gunslinger nodded and switched the next page, revealing Sahelanthropus and several other designs like the first Metal Gears… Peace Walker and ZEKE. "A few of our operatives in the US managed to find a few scrapped Metal Gear designs within Area 51. One of them happens to be a Metal Gear built by Hal Emmerich. It was based on the Sahelanthropus, the one where the 'sons of Big Boss' clashed in an island called Shadow Moses."

Jaune raised an eyebrow at the surname. "Did you just say Shadow Moses? Where Liquid and Solid fought for the first time?"

Ocelot once again nodded. "We were able to steal some designs that the US decided to scrap thanks to their obsession in developing the IS. And this time we won't need children as test pilots. In fact Ichika Orimura has volunteered to be one of the test pilots… well… more like insisted."

The blond chuckled, he wasn't surprised that ichika would want to be the test pilot of a new Metal Gear. "So what's the design based on Sahelanthropus?"

"Huey's son Hal, who was present in Shadow Moses at the time, named it REX." Big Boss said as he walked in. "A larger and more bulky design, stripping away the bipedal mode and sticking with its hind legs. A Main Battle Metal Gear if you want to call it, one designed on firepower and armor. Liquid managed to get his hands on it before the US decided to scrap it. Solid Snake… was able to disable it. The island has been abandoned but we have personnel on the way to Shadow Moses to retrieve it, from there we will be putting it up back to operational use. The Metal Gear has been lying there for more than a decade and a half."

"Boss!" Jaune saluted the legendary soldier.

"At ease, son."

"So… Huey's own estranged son designed a frontline Metal Gear?"

Big Boss nodded. "He's a family man even though he's not married. His adoptive daughter Sunny was the girl Huey used as a test pilot for Sahelanthropus. With the data we recovered and stole, our Pacific branch was able to design the next one you are about to see."

Jaune was thoroughly impressed with the next design that was shown to him. It was certainly not like any Metal Gear he had seen with its more curved and round body. In fact it looked like an agile beast with its tail.

"They call it Metal Gear RAY, while not as armored as REX it is much more agile and has the ability to maneuver underwater. This is the one Ichika wishes to pilot."

"So what does this have to do with me?" Jaune asked.

"We wish for you to be the test pilot for REX." Big Boss replied, earning raised eyebrows from the blond. "You are the most qualified."

"Me?"

Ocelot nodded. "Miller's already letting Hal know what happened to his… 'loving' father. And he's already pooling in the resources to construct these two prototypes in the Pacific FOB. For now, we'll be keeping a closer watch on what's Phantom Task and Liquid up to. It could be a three way battle when the time comes, and we're going to need everything we got to take them on."

"Will that be all?"

"Not yet." Big Boss answered. "We'll be mobilizing troops in the Pacific soon. While we already have several operations going on in Afghanistan, the situation at Tokyo due to this Gate appearing has been slowly escalating. If worse comes to worse we WILL intervene. At Chifuyu Orimura's reluctance she has agreed to send men to the Academy to provide security. You and Ichika will be heading there soon. There have already been reports of violence in the SEA regions. You will head to the Seychelles International Airport by chopper and then board a plane to Manila Bay in the Philippines, after that it's straight to our Pacific FOB. Our guests will be coming along for the ride, get them some proper R&R since we don't exactly have any nearby malls for them to enjoy."

"Yes Boss."

"Good man, dismissed."

 **~oOo~**

"We're going to Japan?"

Jaune nodded as he sat down, reviewing everything in his iDroid while Ruby took a bath, the shower in their bedroom was open so he could see ALL of her getting wet. "Looks like Phantom Task has been causing quite the worry for the IS Academy. So they decided to hire the one private force that is able to combat them efficiently. Not to mention that I am able to make it up to you, a nice trip to Japan, spend some quality time with you."

Ruby smiled as she washed her hair. "A hotel would be nice."

"Oh we will get the best hotel possible. Our guests are coming with us since we don't really have any proper facilities to host them."

She frowned as she turned the shower off and wrapped a towel around her. "Jaune…"

"I'm fine." He said and gestured her to sit on his lap, which she did. He pulled her close and took a whiff of her scented, yet wet, hair. "I've moved on. I have you now."

Her breath hitched at the feeling of his lips tasting her neck. "You can't fault me for worrying."

"I'm not." Jaune rested his forehead on her shoulder. "You worrying about me just means I have something to come home to. Ruby, you practically saved me from my depression. I was THIS close to just taking my own life. You saved my life."

His words had struck her home. Ever since she found out what she really was she had, in all sense, shut down. That was when Jaune decided to take her on their very first date. Just as she convinced him to live for himself, he convinced her to live for herself. They were a perfect match, and they could not live without the other. Tears welled in her eyes as she took his words and held them close to her heart. She felt so lost that day, like she was nothing but some fake living another person's life.

"Jaune I…"

"Let me finish." He quietly said as he cupped her beautiful face. "Ruby, you made me feel alive."

She closed her eyes and pressed her forehead against his. She started humming a tune, making him happily join in. It was moments like this that they always cherished, moments that further solidified their love for each other, moments that further strengthened their bond.

 **~oOo~**

Within the bowels of the Schnee Dust Company freighter, Pyrrha Nikos had her face down on the bed as she wept. She wept for what could have been, and wept for what never been. Pyrrha Nikos was a selfless person, someone who was willing to take great risks for the greater good of all. That was why she had decided to become the Fall Maiden and receive great power. In order to be eligible to become the Fall Maiden she must be of course young, and to become one would mean fulfilling responsibilities as she is someone with immense power. But that meant giving up whatever happiness she had ever wanted in her life. In a way she hated herself for choosing to be selfless instead of selfish. The one person, the one man who had treated her like a normal person, was out of her reach.

But she had to become the Fall Maiden, or the power would have been taken by someone who would use it for acts of evil. She just could not refuse if it meant the fate of the entire kingdom.

The rest of the girls were there comforting her as she cried her heart out.

"I'm telling you we should…"

"No."

Weiss frowned. "But Pyrrha..."

"It's not his fault." The red head got up and wiped her tears away. "If anyone is to blame it should be me. I chose to sacrifice my happiness to become the Fall Maiden."

"But you had no choice." Weiss said.

"Even so… it was my selflessness that ultimately pushed him away." Her sobbing renewed as she hugged her legs and pulled her knees up to her chin. "It was because of me that he left. I promised him that I would help him in every step of the way… but…"

"There was nothing you could have done." Blake said as she placed her hand on the red head's. "It was a crazy time and we needed to do everything to save the academy. Ozpin was left no choice."

Pyrrha just ducked her head and cried. "I just wish things were different!"

"I know, Pyrrha, I know."

"You want some pancakes, Pyrrha?"

"No thank you, Nora." Pyrrha hiccupped and gave her hammer-wielding friend a crooked smile. "But thanks for trying."

Yang rubbed the red head's back. "I know you probably don't want to hear this but if you do care about him then you should be at least happy for him. I mean by the looks of it he's really successful here, that's more then what could be said about him four years ago."

"Yeah…"

 **~oOo~**

In the mess hall, the soldiers of Diamond Dog and the guests from Remnant were having their lunch. Pyrrha had been feeling a little better but of course the pain of heartbreak still lingered. It was there she once again caught the sight of Jaune and his girlfriend, who turned out to be Ruby. She looked on as they sat down with their trays of food. She saw how close they were. She saw how they looked at each other, their eyes filled with love and adoration. In a single moment she imagined her in Ruby's place, eating together, holding hands… whatever a couple does together.

Yang saw this moment to finally reunite with Ruby.

"Ruby!"

"Yang!" The red-haired scythe wielder cried out and fell into the embrace of her older sister. "I can't believe you're here!"

"I can't believe you just decided to run off…" Yang whispered.

"I'm sorry Yang… but… I felt like it was the only way at the time."

"AND YOU!" The blonde brawler glared at Jaune. "Running off with my baby sister! I'm going to kill you!"

"Yang no!" Ruby came to her boyfriend's aid hugged him in a protective manner.

"Jeez." One of the few female Diamond Dogs spoke to her as she set his tray down right in front of her. She was one of the older staff, a veteran from nine years ago during the time of Militaires Sans Frontieres, Soldiers Without Borders, Big Boss's old company before it was destroyed in an attack. "Those two practically like they're already married. Hell everyone's been wondering when the boy will pop the question."

"Aren't they a bit young to be married?" Weiss asked with a frown as she didn't like the idea of her old teammate being married at such an age. Especially because it was Jaune whom she was in a relationship with.

The older woman shrugged. "Normally yes, but in our line of work we can die anytime. So there's nothing wrong in getting married in your early twenties. Heck those two are already living together." Before she dug into her food she saw the look in Pyrrha's eyes. "I know that look, girl. You had it in for him, didn't ya?"

Pyrrha's face went red as she shrunk into her seat. "W-What m-makes you s-say that?"

The woman chuckled. "You can't fool me, little girl. I used to be your age, young and in love. I was head over heels for this guy back in my high school days. But I blew it… and he went off dating some other girl. Years down the road they married and lived a happy life with kids and all. And you're probably thinking right now that you may never find that small piece of happiness."

Pyrrha looked at her food and played with it a little. "Am I that obvious?"

The woman smiled at her. "Only to women, honey. Let me give you a piece of advice. Don't ever give up. Just because your first love isn't the one doesn't mean you won't even get a shot at love. You just have to be patient. Who knows? Maybe that one perfect guy is just around the corner."

"Ooooooooh."

And just like that, a moaning Diamond Dog wearing a balaclava over his face came out of a corner, clutching his stomach in pain with knees bent down. From the looks of it he was having stomach problems and…

 ***PRRRRT***

The soldiers groaned at the sound as some of them clamped their noses.

"Dammit Johnny!" The woman stood up and glared. "Can you please take your shit somewhere else?"

"Sorry!" The Diamond Dog turned around while still clutching his stomach. Unfortunately he just wouldn't stop farting.

"Well…" The woman sat back down and gave the girls a sheepish smile. "Just make sure it's not that corner."

Pyrrha giggled and started to feel better. What the woman told her was true, it wasn't the end for her. So deciding to at least make things right, she stood up and approached Jaune and Ruby. "Hello."

The couple looked up and saw Pyrrha smiling nervously at them. "Pyrrha… what's up?"

Before anything can be said

"OOOOH!" Johnny's voice came from one of the restrooms as a few guys came running out with their fingers over their noses. That was then followed by inhuman growls and long farts.

Pyrrha chuckled at the sight. "Is he…"

"He's fine." Jaune said, though he himself was unsure. "He's… I really don't know."

"Oh man! There's no paper!"

 **NA: Gotta have Johnny in this. And don't worry folks… there's hope for Pyrrha! And I bet you all know who might that guy be.**

 **Huey's dead! Hurray!**


	4. Chapter 4

**NA: I would just like to say… Rest In Peace Pyrrha Nikos… you will always be remembered.**

 **So to those wondering about Ruby's personality, I sort of wanted to make her seem different but in some ways the same. You will see more of her love for weapons but now she has a job in Diamond Dogs as a part of R &D, meaning SHE is the one designing, making, and improving weapons. Instead of just obsessing over it like she was when she was fifteen years old (She is now 19), she is much more mellow.**

 **BUT, she has a gentle side, much like what Summer was as described by Yang. A trait known as the 'super mom' that she will sometimes show. So in a way she is looking more like Summer as she got older. Switching the pairing to Lancaster actually made it more convenient for me to write as it opened up more possibilities for the story. But don't worry, she will still be that cookie lover we all know and love.**

 **So what I did here was that the reason why Ruby is different in personality here is because of Roman Torchwick and his… little rant before he got eaten… seriously that death was just so anticlimactic.**

 **But you don't expect someone to just stay the same… especially after what Ruby experienced in Volume 3, now I can't say for Roosterteeth if some of her personality is going to change after that. But I will bet you that she would have matured, not only because of what happened to Pyrrha… but what happened to Yang with losing her arm.**

 **And a reminded to you all. This is FOUR YEARS after the original story. I will say it again… FOUR YEARS.**

 **And no… I will not be reverting back to Paz, I have already changed so much of my story planning thanks to Roosterteeth's 'Valentines Special'. Watching the episode just messed with what I had planned, and it also messed with my mojo.**

 **Hell so many RWBY fanfics got either rewritten or discontinued.**

 **This is just a grand mess we got into…**

 **Anyways! On with the story!**

 **~oOo~**

Blake, Yang, and Pyrrha were watching a few of the newer members of the Diamond Dogs train in a martial art called CQC, or close quarters combat. It was a style of fighting created by the legendary Boss and Big Boss, whom at the time was codenamed Snake. It was both a lethal and non-lethal fighting technique that is designed to disable one's opponent before going in for the kill. You could either use just your bear hands or a knife. Either way it was a deadly fighting technique that got piqued their curiosity. But what really got to them was how good Jaune was with it.

The blond in question blocked an attack by using his left hand before grabbing hold of his opponent and flipping him over. Once the man was on the ground he pressed a dummy knife onto the man's neck. "Dead, you're too slow."

The new recruit cursed to himself as he got up.

"Use your opponent's weight and look for weaknesses, don't just rush in blindly. Use your head."

"Yes sir."

"Looks like you're handling their training nicely."

"Boss!" Jaune exclaimed and saluted the legendary soldier. This was followed by the rest of the recruits as they saluted the man with equal respect.

"Woah." Yang whispered at the sight of the older man.

Pyrrha was surprised at how quick Jaune was to salute the man. For him to call the man boss only meant one thing.

"That's Big Boss." Miller said as he walked up to the girls. "The commander and founder of Diamond Dogs. He's a legend in the eyes of those who live in the battlefield. He's also someone the young ones like Jaune looks up to like a grandfather-figure."

"Boss." Jaune began as stepped up. "You wanna go a round?"

Big Boss smiled as he took the cigar off his mouth and placed it in a special case in his pocket. "Sure. But you better not hold back."

Jaune grinned as both men then dropped into a combat stance.

"Alright recruits!" Miller barked, causing the cat Faunus to jump a little at the intensity of his voice. "Watch and observe as the Boss and Jackal use the basic fundamentals of CQC!"

The blond observed his commander's stance before making the first move. His threw a few punches and kicks that the older man easily dodged. He winded his lower body and went for a kick that once again Big Boss avoided being hit by using his arms to block the blow. Even in a man in his early seventies he still moved like he was forty years younger. Thanks to the research of gene therapy and the advances of genetic engineering, human lifespan lengthened. With skill and finesse he countered the young man's attacks with his own set of punches and kicks. Since Jaune was too close he dodged the first few attacks with his arms before doing a backflip to dodge the roundhouse kick.

"Holy cow." Yang's jaw nearly dropped at the acrobatic maneuver the blond did.

Pyrrha was stupefied at the scene. She had no idea that Jaune was even capable of doing something like that. She had already seen Jaune's combat prowess when he fought those pirates but she still could not believe her eyes at how skilled he had become.

Blake on the other hand had gotten interested in the fighting style. From what she had observed the combatants used their opponent's bodyweight with the combination of strength based attacks like punches and kicks. Jaune however was much more acrobatic with the amount of kicks he preferred to use.

"Savate." Miller explained to the raven-haired cat Faunus. "Jaune uses a variation of Savate along with CQC to create his own style. It uses more kicks than punches. Jaune's a natural knife fighter so he would rather use his hands to wield a blade while his kicks disable his opponent. But of course he's no strange to throwing punches, that's what CQC is there for."

"Look at him." Pyrrha saw the look in Jaune's eyes. "He's enjoying himself."

Miller shrugged. "Well it's not every day he gets to go a round with Big Boss himself."

"Why is he called Big Boss?" Yang asked as she spotted her teammate Weiss coming in.

"It dates back during the Cold War." Miller adjusted his glasses and just observed the spar. "It was a time when espionage was the norm between the United States and Russia. Big Boss, who as at the time codenamed Snake, was tasked with retrieving a scientist named Nikolai Stepanovich Sokolov. Only that things went wrong when his own mentor The Boss defected."

"Why did she defect?"

"Nobody really knows but Big Boss himself." Miller replied. And that is a secret he will keep to his grave."

"So what happened after that?"

"Big Boss was sent in to eliminate his own beloved mentor."

Weiss widened her eyes. "He was what? But why?"

"It was either kill her, or risk a war that would have no doubt engulfed the entire world once more. Neither country could risk that… so eliminating her was the only answer."

The spar went on with Big Boss finally gaining the upper hand. The much more experienced man found an opening and grabbed hold of Jaune's bionic arm, throwing him over his shoulder and down onto the floor. Jaune gasped at the sudden pain of his back slamming onto the metal surface.

"And he…" Pyrrha bit her lip. "Killed her?"

"He did. He completed his mission." Miller nodded. "And for that he was awarded the title of Big Boss. He continued serving in a unit called FOXHOUNd but then left around fifteen years ago to form his own band of mercenaries."

"The Diamond Dogs." Blake guessed, but to her surprise Miller shook his head.

"No… we were once known as Militaires Sans Frontiers, soldiers without borders. But nine years ago we can under attack, and our original home was destroyed. It was from there we rebuilt, stronger than ever. That was when Diamond Dogs was created, and despite all that happened to us we never looked back."

Jaune panted as Big Boss stood over him.

Miller saw this and chuckled at the scene. "And this is why he is the legendary Big Boss. None could even come close to matching him."

The legendary soldier just smiled at the young man. "You've come a long way, Jackal."

"Still not close to beating you."

"Nah, you're still years away." The older man held out his hand and helped the blond up. "But… you've improved."

"Thank you, Boss."

 **Diamond Dogs**

 **Chapter 4: Amoureux**

 **Residential Platform**

"So uh…" Yang shifted her body as she sat on the couch of Ruby and Jaune's home. "You and Vomit Boy… together."

Ruby pursed her lips at the nickname she used to call him. She walked over to the small living room and placed a tray of tea down… along with cookies, LOTS of cookies. If there was one thing she never got tired of it was cookies. "We've been together for three and a half years now."

"What about life here, how's that?"

"It's great." The scythe-wielder said. "I've been working here as a weapons specialist. You should have seen my face when I first saw the weapons of this world, I was a drooling mess."

Yang chuckled. "I guess some things stay the same."

"By the way…" Ruby pointed at her sister. "You're not going to try and kill my boyfriend again, right?"

The brawler looked a little sheepish and scratched the back of her head. "Uh… no…"

The red head sighed in relief as she sat down. "Good… because I can't live without my pillow."

The blonde sister choked on her tea and coughed. "What!?"

Ruby shot her hand up to her mouth. "Oops…"

Yang's face went beet red as she read between the lines of her little sister's words. "Y-You… and him?"

"Uh…" Ruby shifted her legs as her face went red. "Y-Yeah…"

The older sister palmed her face and groaned. _'Dad is going to freak!'_

"ZWEI!" Ruby squealed and spotted a certain Pembroke Welsh Corgi at the door. "You're here too!"

Yang watched the scene and shook her head. _'Some things really don't change.'_ "So…"

"If you're wondering if I have seen combat then yes, I have."

Yang clicked her tongue, a little surprise that Ruby practically knew what she was about to ask. "And you've…"

The red head gently set her tea cup down. "Yeah…I have. It was difficult at first. Difficult for Jaune and I as we were practically ordered to take lives. But then we realized that there are bad people in this world, people like _Roman Torchwick_."

The blonde practically felt the venom of her sister's words when he spoke that man's name. It was already clear how much Ruby hated him for what happened four years ago. "And you're still…"

Ruby shook her head. "I haven't touched Crescent Rose in over a year. Decided to retire and become a stay at home. Aside from weapons development of course but that's completely different. At least I'm doing what I like to do, seeing and making new weapons."

Yang softly smiled at that. "Yeah… at least that part of you hasn't changed."

 **~oOo~**

 **R &D Platform**

He flexed his mechanical arm after an educational session with Big Boss. The engineer tweaked his arm a little with the equipment on the table.

"Reflex and reaction felt a little delayed."

"Yeah well it's not every day you get to fight the Boss." The engineer just kept on adjusting the arm. "Okay, how's that?"

Jaune took a look at his fingers and rotated it with the fingers twiddling around. He smiled and clenched it. "Better, thanks Mick."

"Anytime bro. And next time have Ruby take a look at it, she's a lot better at this than I am."

"sure!" Exiting the building he was met by his old teammates. All of them looking at him with curious eyes. "What?"

"You've really gotten better." Ren said with a ghost of a smile. "Maybe we should spar some time."

"I'll take you up on that." Jaune patted his good friend on the arm. "But not right now, I got some packing to do."

"Packing?" Nora tilted her head before gasping. "Are you going on vacation!?"

"Well… sort of… you guys are coming actually."

Pyrrha raised her eyebrow. "What?"

"Boss wants you guys to come with me and a few of the guys to Japan. We don't exactly have any guest facilities here so we're flying all the way there. I got a security job to do there with the Pacific branch but…"

"But."

"Japan's capital of Tokyo has some really nice places there, especially in Akihabara where some of the best stores are located."

Pyrrha's eyes lit up. "Shopping?"

"Yep."

"When do we go?"

"Tomorrow morning." He replied as he led them towards the jeep that will take them back to the command platform. "So you better tell the others to get ready."

Pyrrha was giddy as she and her team boarded the jeep with Jaune at the driver's seat. As the vehicle moved she felt the air rush to her face. From the distance she could see the islands of the Seychelles. From being excited, she relaxed herself and just enjoyed the ride. "So… how have you been, Jaune?"

"I'm doing a lot better now. I lost a good friend a week ago, he was like a brother to me. There was no way we could have saved him and the others."

"I heard about the outbreak." Ren said. "I'm sorry."

"We carry their light with us." Jaune said as he patted his shoulder. The symbol of the Diamond Dogs with an actual diamond on it. "Diamonds made from their ashes. We carry them into battle with us."

"That's… pretty symbolic."

"Yeah…"

Seated at the passenger seat beside Jaune, Pyrrha saw the sadness in his eyes. She looked down and realized that he had lost a lot. He was different, changed by his experience in this world. He was not that naïve boy she once knew. Here he had made a life for himself, a life with Ruby.

"You love her, don't you?"

"Hm?"

"I mean Ruby."

He nodded as he kept his eyes front. "More than ever. In a way her cheerful personality saved me from my depression. But I'm also grateful for all that you've done for me. I'm just sorry that…"

"Don't be… if anyone is to blame it should be me."

"Even then… I'm still sorry."

"I'm happy for you though." The red head told him in a gentle tone. "I really am."

"Thanks Pyr'."

 **~oOo~**

In this world the common man is valued less. Since the advent of the Infinite Stratos, women have been given more power. Which in itself was not a bad thing, but the consequences that followed were simply not the thing one could ignore. Women were now more prominent in both world politics, and in militaries. Men on the other hand had become vagabonds, making ends meet as mercenaries. Statistics show that in North America more than 15% of a country's male population had gone to military private sector, and more than 33% of the average adolescent male, ranging from 16-20 years of age, had dropped out of school. And what was worse was that number was slowly rising. Things are much worse in areas like South Africa. Statistics were staggering, over 75% of the average adolescent males are high school and college dropouts. The same percentage could be said of the males in the country as they had joined local PMCs like Executive Outcomes.

The development of the IS had left little room for a nation's military as construction of even a single one cost billions. That meant that each country's military had to make do. Even with whatever incentives they could come up with, more and more men had resigned or deserted to join PMCs.

But not only that, small scale conflicts have erupted all over the world. Eastern Europe was on the verge of collapse from all the infighting, South East Asia was now pirate domain, and the Middle East was still, if not, even more chaotic. The most notable conflict was the war with the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Sudan against Iran. All PMCs could do in that kind of situation was provide relief for refugees who have lost their homes.

 **Tokyo, Japan**

A young man with long scarlet hair wearing a bandana flipped the sign on the door, turning it from open to closed. He was about to close and lock the door when someone entered.

"We're closed."

"Even for me, Dan?"

His eyes widened at the sound of the voice. He snapped towards the door and saw someone he hadn't seen in four years. "Ichika…"

Ichika Orimura, wearing a gray hoodie with military pants and boots, smiled at him. "Been a while."

"Bro!" Dan rushed up to his childhood friend and gave him a fierce hug. "Four years! Where the hell have you been!?"

"I've been around." Ichika said as they shook hands. "Here and there."

Dan gestured him to enter. "Come on in man, I'll fix you something up. On the house."

Moments later Dan had brought his good friend some food, they sat down and talked about what Ichika had been up to these past four years since he just up and left. What Dan found out no doubt shocked him. "You're a Diamond Dog?"

The raven-haired PMC nodded as he showed him his dog tags. His name engraved along with the emblem of the private military company he was working for. "I secretly left with Master Miller and trained under him. I've been a Diamond Dog ever since."

"That means…"

"Yeah… I saw a lot of action after I turned eighteen."

"And you certainly look different." Dan added. "I mean… there's this… aura around you. Not like that dense guy back then."

Ichika chuckled at the memory. "Yeah… I was an idiot back then huh?"

"Well I wouldn't put it that way." Dan then looked over to his friend's left cheek and saw scarring right below the eye that stretched all the way down to the lower half of the cheek. "That's a nasty scar."

"30mm shell casing from an Apache when I was in Iraq." Ichika said as he ran his hand over the scar. "Idiot decided to fire his guns right over me."

"Yikes."

Placing the chopsticks on the now empty plate, he grabbed his bottle of beer and took a sip. "I uh… I heard you and Lingyin got together."

Dan nodded with a small smile. "We uh… hooked up a year after you left. Things have been going great so far."

"That's good."

"What about you, man? No special someone out there?"

Ichika shook his head. "I've been too busy with my career. Couldn't really find the time. But I don't know… maybe things will be different now I'm back."

"Ran misses you, you know?" Dan stated. "She decided to just go to a regular high school instead of the academy."

"Is that right?"

"She likes you."

The Diamond Dog sighed and took a sip of his beer. "Yeah I sort of realized that the day I left. Heck the girls back in the academy felt the same way. I guess the reason why I was so dense was because… it was just how much of a clusterfuck everything turned into."

Dan snickered. "Never thought I'd see the day…"

"See what exactly?"

"You… swearing… you hated swearing, always being that mister goodie two shoes."

Ichika simply grunted in response. "Four years is a lot of time to change someone. Especially when you've been living with people who were pretty much discarded by society. I remember the day I arrived, if it weren't for Master Miller everyone would have hated me for who I am. But because he said I 'defected' and provided a lot of information… I was accepted, just like that. I owe Master Miller for what he's done for me."

"Wow…"

"Yep." A moment of silence lingered as Ichika fiddled with his half-empty bottle. "So… how's Ran?"

"She's at her friend's place, staying the night after a grueling entrance exam for Tokyo University."

"You don't say?"

Dan smiled. "She decided she wanted to be a biologist. And me… I got this place. Rin's thinking of moving in and helping me run the place."

The Diamond Dog grinned. "Good for you, Dan. I'm happy for you."

"You should find your own piece of happiness too, bro." Dan said. "What about that Charlotte girl? I mean out of all the girls you told me about, she' the one who doesn't hit you for doing something stupid."

The mercenary chuckled as he ran his fingers over his black hair. "Charlotte is one of a kind. Maybe…"

"You staying anywhere tonight?"

"I booked a hotel so don't worry." Finishing the bottle of beer, he relaxed into his seat. "It's good to see you man."

"Don't be a stranger out there." Dan shook his hand as they stood up. "You come by anytime if you want some good food. I bet Rin would want to kick your ass for disappearing like that."

"Don't remind me." The black-haired Diamond Dog mumbled but snickered. He grabbed his large duffel bag and slung it over his arm. "I'll see you around, alright?"

Making his way down the dark streets of residential Tokyo, he pondered the words he had discussed with his long-time friend, and he thought about them hard. He then began to remember the hurt… the pain… the wounds… scars… the loneliness…

And then it started to rain. How convenient.

He looked at the sky and gave it an angry stare. "Yeah… just go fuck with me why don't you?"

Pulling his hood up he just walked through the rain. He began to remember how lonely his life was back then. His sister would be barely home, forcing him to take up to 'raising' himself. She would be gone for almost four to six days a week with very little contact. He understood what she was doing and why, she was practically trying to put food on the table, not to mention school tuition and whatnot. But for god's sakes would it hurt to have some quality time?

But what hurt him the most was how he would always address him as Orimura-sensei and not Chifuyu-nee, well minus the few times when she was off duty but…

He wanted to be angry at her, but he couldn't. He wanted to hate her, but he couldn't find it in himself to do so. No matter what she was still his older sister, the one family who did not abandon him. The one who saved him when he was kidnapped many years ago. She was still his older sister, and he still loved her.

And then everything changed… he met her… an innocent, beautiful, crossdressing girl by the name of Charlotte Dunois. He remembered her warm hands, that warm kiss to the forehead when he fell asleep. She was different, she was nothing like Houki where she would bash him with her bokken for every awkward moment. No… she as kind, gentle, and at times she would tease him. Calling him 'Ichika no ecchi'. The way she said… it was heavenly. He wanted to see her.

"M-May I help you sir?"

He was snapped out of his stupor when he realized he was inside the hotel, a high class hotel to be in fact. Lowering his hood, the woman at the table gasped, in fact everyone in the hotel lobby gasped at the sight.

"Oh my…" The receptionist stammered at realizing who was in front of her.

"I uh… have a reservation?"

"Oh yes!" The woman went through the computer and confirmed it. "One top floor first class suite for… Orimura Ichika…" The woman then scrambled for the key card. "H-Here you go sir… and… enjoy your stay."

Ignoring the whispers and looks directed at him. He just smiled at the woman and made his way towards the elevator with the key card in hand. Top floor high class suite, of course he could afford it, Diamond Dogs aren't cheap after all. Entering the nice room he set his bag down on the couch and made his way to the window. In the distance he could see the island that housed IS Academy. She was there.

Tomorrow evening Diamond Dog helicopters will be flying in. But he will be there much earlier.

"Tomorrow." He told himself.

 **~oOo~**

 **Next Day**

 **IS Academy**

" **This just in!"** The news reporter on the television caught the eye of several of the girls of the IS Academy as they ate their lunch. **"Orimura Ichika, who has mysteriously disappeared four years ago, has been sighted in the Suzume Hotel in Tokyo."**

Some of the girls stood up in shock. One had long brown hair, two of them were blonde, and the other had silver hair. The last one though, who had short brown hair, went for her phone.

" **Shocking pictures were taken as one had caught our eye."** The reporter then showed them the picture of Ichika in the hotel lobby. One where it showed his left side with a huge scar on his left cheek. **"There seems to be some kind of large scarring on his left cheek. This only begged the question… where was Orimura Ichika the entire time?"**

"Mon dieu." One of the blondes whispered in French. She was completely horrified at the sight of the scar.

The other girls were equally horrified, in fact the entire room was silent as all eyes were directed towards the scar on his cheek. They could practically see what was left of not only burn marks but where the skin used to be.

What happened to him?

"I just called Dan." The last girl informed them. "He said Ichika came by last night just to say hello. He said he's really changed."

"Anything else?" One of the blondes asked in an English accent.

The short-haired brunette shook her head. "No…"

The long-haired brunette gritted sighed. "What is going on? He shows up now of all time? What happened to him? Why does he have that scar?"

"That's the million dollar question."

There was then a commotion by the window as several students were looking out the window. All the words they heard was 'it's him' and 'he's here'. Deciding to see what exactly was going on they moved towards the window and looked. What they saw shocked them to the core. Standing right in the academy's main courtyard was none other than Orimura Ichika, wearing what appeared to be some black hooded military uniform with a large duffel bag slung over his shoulder.

Charlotte, Houki, Cecilia, Laura, and Lingyin widened their eyes when they saw him walking up to the building with a serious look, a look they had never seen have. So without further ado the students rushed towards the stairwell and made their way down to the school's lobby. When they got down they were met with the faculty of the academy, including Ichika's older sister Chifuyu who was now the school's headmaster.

Tugging the bag over his arm, he stopped just a few metres away from Chifuyu with a look of indifference, but in his eyes emotions were flying.

"Ichika…" The woman began.

"I think it's best if we talk in your office."

Chifuyu nodded and turned around to glare at the students. "What are you all standing around here for!? Get back inside!"

Ichika snickered and shook his head. Things here haven't really changed.

 **~oOo~**

Within the confines of Chifuyu's office, Ichika saw the bracelet on her table. "So you kept it all this time, huh?"

"It's not like anyone else can pilot it." The woman stated as she place some tea on the table. "So… my suspicions were right. You're a Diamond Dog."

Glancing at the emblem on his left and right shoulders, he gave her a grunting nod. "I've been with them for four years. Doing a couple ops and whatnot."

The older sibling rubs her face and sighs. Ichika saw the look on her face and saw that she was disappointed with herself. "Look… sis. I know we didn't exactly part on the best of terms, it's why I came back. I wanted to make amends. I'm fully aware of what you've done and I know that you did all of that for me… "

"I just wish things could have been different." Chifuyu whispered.

"Don't we all."

Chifuyu bit her lips. "I'm a horrible sister, aren't I?"

The younger sibling looked sour and flinched at her tone. "Chifuyu-nee…"

"It's because of me that you got kidnapped all those years ago. I nearly got you killed twice… and now…" She took a shaky deep breath. "I should have been there for you more."

"There's nothing you can do to change the past." He got up and sat beside her. "We weren't exactly a 'normal' family to begin with. It was one battle after another… but this time I'm prepared… more than prepared."

"I guess I did something right with you."

He snickered. "You did… and thank you."

Chifuyu gave him a genuine smile and pulled him into a hug. "I love you Ichika…"

"I love you too, nee-chan."

"Don't ever tell anyone that I cried." She stated with tears going down her cheek. "I have a reputation to maintain."

He laughed and patted her back. "Don't worry, I won't." Once they broke the hug he flashed her a look. "Can you uh… do me a favor?"

"Huh?"

"I want to know Char's dorm room number. I was also planning to go see her today."

Chifuyu understood what he was requesting. She smiled. "I see… you've made your choice, huh?"

 **~oOo~**

Unlike high school students in IS Academy, college students get their own personal dorm room for the rest of their college years, depending on how long the course is of course. Charlotte Dunois, illegitimate daughter to the CEO Dunois Corporation, had decided to take on technical field in IS development. She was already skilled in it so there was no need to waste that talent. Though she should be studying right now, she can't. Not with who had showed up today at the academy's doorstep. She couldn't take her mind off of him. The man that she had fallen in love with four years ago.

She remembered the day he had suddenly vanished, and remembered how devastate she was when all she saw in his room was his IS bracelet. Why did he leave? What could have possibly caused him to leave without even saying a word?

Charlotte was then snapped out of her musing when she heard the knock on the door. She took a deep breath and composed herself. It was probably just one of her friends or the teacher. She went to the door and opened it, but who was at the door was someone she wasn't no expecting.

"I-I-I-I-I-Ichiki…" The blonde's breath hitched at the sight of the man who was now slightly taller than she remembered.

"Hey." Ichika greeted in a hushed and gentle tone. "You look good."

She then immediately pulled him into the room and locked the door. Staring at him, she did something that she never thought she would do. She slapped him right across the cheek.

Ichika brought a hand to his left cheek which was now red. "Yeah… I deserved that."

"Four years." Charlotte whispered. "You disappeared on us for four years…"

"I have no explanation as to why I left without saying anything." He replied. "I couldn't say anything for that matter."

"You could have at least just said goodbye." The Frenchwoman whispered as tears welled in her eyes.

"You would have tried to stop me."

"I…" Her entire body stiffened when she felt his arms wrap around her and pulled her close to his chest. "I'm so glad you're alright."

Ichika rested his chin on her vanilla scented hair and smiled before kissing her forehead. "I'm so glad to see you again… Char."

Moments later they both sat beside each other by her desk with food on it. Ichika smiled at how the French girl was now eating with chopsticks.

"I had a lot of practice." The blonde stated as she ate the food he cooked. Looking at him, she saw that he was looking back at her with those gentle eyes, making her flush. "I… uh…"

"Seriously, you're already flustered with me looking at you?"

"Ichika no ecchi…"

He chuckles and rested his cheek on his palm, his eyes just staring at her. "It's been a while since I've heard you call me that. It takes me back."

She was surprised at his reaction, he was no longer flustered by her calling him in such a way. Instead he just… smiled. "You've really changed."

"Yeah well… four years is a long time." He whispered, sending shivers down her spine. "How have you been?"

"It hasn't been the same ever since you left."

Ichika gives her a sad smile. "I'm really sorry, Char… but I was left with little to no option."

Charlotte looked at his left cheek and lifted her hand to touch the scar. His body froze for a moment before it relaxed to the feeling of her tender fingers caressing his skin. He relished in the feeling of her touch. "What… what happened to you? How did you…"

He nervously gulped as his hand reached for his neck and took out his dog tags. It was there that he showed her the Diamond Dog emblem. "It was during an operation in Iraq a year ago."

Her eyes dared towards the metal tags on the table. "You… you're a… b-but… why?"

"I wanted to build a life of my own. Truth be told I was already planning to sign up for their youth program but discovering that I was able to pilot an IS changed things. But even then I was in contact with Master Miller himself."

Her eyes widened even more. Everyone in the world practically knew of Kazuhira Miller, one of the legendary soldiers alongside Big Boss himself. The Diamond Dogs were legendary. "You met him?"

He nodded. "He trained me… two straight years he trained me until I turned eighteen. That was then I went for a few ops in the Middle East, serving a single tour."

"You've been…" She bit her lip. "Doing well for yourself."

"Yeah…" He shrugged. "What with the war economy and all."

Charlotte stared at the scar as she just kept running her fingers over the scar. "You were risking your life out there this entire time and I didn't know it. You could have just stayed here."

"I couldn't do that."

She closed her eyes and let a single tear escape. But then nearly yelped when she felt his thumb wipe it away. "Ichika…"

"I came back not only because I was ordered to… but because I wanted to see you." He pulled himself closer to her, their eyes intently staring into one another.

"Ichika…"

"Charlotte…"

Their lips connected into a soft and loving kiss as they leaned close. It was everything Charlotte had ever wanted. He had finally made his decision and chose her out of all the rest. While a part of her began to feel sorry for the girls, a surge of happy emotions overtook that as they stood up and wrapped their arms around each other.

"Je t'aime mon amour." She whispered as they broke the kiss.

"I love you too…"

 **~oOo~**

"So how did you get the scar?" Charlotte asked as the couple sat on the floor by the window, leaning over to the side of the bed. To be precise it was Ichika leaning on the bed while she sat on his lap, relishing in the feeling of his arms around her.

"Like I said earlier, I was in Iraq a year ago." He replied while watching the sun set. "While I was providing some sniper cover, some idiot pilot in his Apache gunship decided to fly right over me and fire his guns. Super-heated 30mm shell casings landed right on top of me with a couple slamming onto my cheek. Hurt like hell too."

She hummed as she kissed the scar. "At least you got out okay."

"I guess…" He smirked as he gave her another kiss.

"I feel like I am in a dream." She whispered as she rested her head at the crook of his neck. "You were never this forward before."

"It just took me four year to realize it."

Charlotte giggled and let out a content sigh. "The wait was worth it."

"You know I bought a house in the Seychelles… by a nice beautiful beach."

She looked up and saw the smile he was giving her. "What?"

"I want to take you there sometime. Just the two of us. Consider it a gift for being four years late."

"I'd love to mon amour." Charlotte whispered back.

A commotion was heard from outside as the thumping sounds of helicopters alerted everyone. Ichika leaned over and spotted several UTH-66 Blackfoots in the horizon. "They're here."

"Who?"

"The Diamond Dogs."

 **~oOo~**

Over a dozen helicopters landed all around the academy with heavily armed soldiers pouring out into the area. Then there was the sight of seven individuals who looked nothing like the soldiers. But the amount of soldiers pouring in was no doubt concerning for the students.

"So you decided to go ahead of us, huh?"

Ichika laughed as he shook the hand of a Caucasian soldier with gold hair. "I had a few important things to do." He then caught sight of Miller and saluted him. "Sir!"

"At ease." Miller said before seeing the older Orimura walking out of the door. "Chifuyu Orimura, a pleasure to finally meet you."

"Likewise." Ichika's older sibling responded. "Normally I should be angry at you but you did watch over my younger brother these past four years. And for that I thank you."

"Your brother is an excellent soldier."

Gasps rang out when the students caught sight of a certain man in his early seventies with an eyepatch over his right eye.

"Big Boss…" Laura whispered from behind. "It's really him."

At this Ichika snaps to and salutes. "Boss!"

The legendary soldier nods and salutes back before stretching out his hand. "How are you doing, son?"

"Very good sir." Ichika returned the gesture and shook it.

"Big Boss." Chifuyu felt a little intimidated as she was practically standing in front of a battlefield legend. "An honor to meet you."

"And you must be Chifuyu Orimura." Big Boss stated. "You have the quite the reputation. I appreciate that you have come to us to provide this place security. As much as I have little appreciation for the IS, this school has become a target by a 'certain organization'. And the possibility of innocent lives being harmed cannot be ignored."

"You are the only PMC who has any experience fighting 'them' AND producing results." Chifuyu crossed her arms. "I was left little choice."

From the larger CH-53 King Stallion, D-Walkers were being unloaded, many of them armed with experimental magnetic rail guns, the types meant to take down an Infinite Stratos with relative ease. Things were going to get pretty interesting.

 **~oOo~**

Ichika really looked like a soldier when he put on his gear. Strapped to his left was Diamond Dogs' standard squad automatic weapon, the AAM (Modular Automatic Weapon), chambered in 7.62x51mm, a machine gun based on the American M249, which in extension is based off of the widely used Belgian FN Minimi. Aside from the similarities in design, there was one huge difference, this one weighed around ten to eleven pounds, making it one of the lightest machine guns out there alongside the LSAT machine gun.

From there were several knives strapped to his arms and legs. Last but not least, there was his gas mask, its eyes glowed a bright blue during the night or when it's dark. But for now the gas mask will be tucked away in a pouch on his lower back until it was necessary to use. Stepping out of the helicopter, his old friends, including his now girlfriend Charlotte, stood in front of him with wide eyes.

"YOU JERK!" Rin growled as she gave the Diamond Dog a slug to the stomach. All around his fellow Diamond Dogs chuckled.

"Guess I deserved that." He wasn't affected by the hit since he was wearing body armor, but it was the thought that counts.

"You're damn right you do!" The former Chinese representative candidate exclaimed. "You don't just run off to become a mercenary without telling us!"

"You would have tried to stop me."

The short-haired brunette sighed. "This is probably the dumbest thing you could have ever done."

"On the contrary, I think this was the best decision I ever made. Heck I bought a nice beach house in the Seychelles."

"Ichika." Houki was still concerned. "You could have just stayed here."

Ichika shook his head. "I love my current job. I can't imagine myself doing anything else. This is who I am now."

Laura on the other hand had stars in her eyes. "What's it like serving under Big Boss?"

The Diamond Dug chuckled as he crossed his arms, looking out to where Miller was instructing his fellow brothers-in-arms. His face then became deadpanned at the sight of a certain Diamond Dog coming out of a porta potty. "Akiba!"

Johnny Sasaki, age 22, turned his head zipping up his pants. "Oh, Ichika! Hey!"

"The heck are you doing here?"

"My grandma lives here, I thought I should say hi to her tomorrow."

Ichika narrows his eyes and looks close. "Dude… is that a black eye?"

Johnny gives his comrade a sheepish chuckle as he turns his head to see Weiss glaring at him while Pyrrha waved. "I uh…"

 _ **Flashback**_

 _ **6 Hours Ago**_

 _ **Pacific FOB**_

" _Hi I'm Johnny!" The Diamond Dog greeted the girls as they boarded the helicopter. "I'll be riding with you this time."_

" _Where's Jaune?" Pyrrha asked as she, Blake, Nora, and Weiss got in. The rest were riding other choppers, they thought it would be fair for some of them to switch places for every flight trip._

" _He's with Miss Ruby at another helicopter, but don't worry, I'll be keeping you guys company."_

" _Well it's nice to meet you, Johnny." Pyrrha shook the man's hand. "I'm Pyrrha."_

" _Hehehe." Johnny scratched his head while feeling a little flustered at meeting such a pretty girl. "Y-Yeah…"_

" _Déjà vu." Weiss whispered to herself. She could not help but get the feeling that she may be witnessing this world's incarnation of the old Jaune Arc._

" _Everyone strap in!" Pequod told them. "We're lifting off!"_

 _The moment the aircraft got into the air and joined the fleet of other helicopters, Johnny groaned and clutched his stomach. "Oh no…"_

" _Oh god!" Pequod started to panic. "No, why now of all times! Dammit Akiba!"_

" _I'm sorry…"_

" _Are you alright?"_

 _He shook his head._

 _Pyrrha placed a hand on the soldier's back. "Are you having stomach pains?"_

 _Johnny nodded._

" _Diarrhea?"_

 _He nodded again._

" _Uh oh." Nora paled as this entire situation began to feel familiar for some reason. "Stay away foul beast!"_

" _You… disgusting brute!" Weiss screeched as she backed away._

" _I'm s-s-s-sorry!" Johnny managed to grab a gas mask and gave it to Pyrrha. "You better wear this…"_

" _Uh… okay?" The red head wore it and tightened the straps. This was the first time she would be wearing something like this._

 _Weiss then began to panic as the Diamond Dog's stomach made an extremely loud and inhuman growl. Before long Nora was now hiding behind her. "No… Nora! Let me go! I'm not your personal shield!" Her face went even paler as Johnny's growling got even louder. "No… no, no, no, no, no, no, no!"_

 _Blake was quivering in fear at the sight. "Mew…"_

 _Before the others could scream… it came._

 _ ***PRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRT***_

Before any of them could even scream, the Diamond Dog with the bowel problem grunted once more and unleashed an even deadlier gas.

 _ ***prt.***_

 _ **End Flashback**_

Ichika gave his friend a weird look. "Seriously?"

Johnny moaned in despair. At least Pyrrha was spared, but that Weiss girl gave him a black eye for it while Blake was a shivering mess.

Nora on the other hand was surprisingly okay.

 **NA: Johnny strikes again… XD I couldn't help it… I just could not not include it. I mean this is Johnny we're talking about.**

 **Hope you guys enjoyed this!**


	5. Chapter 5

**NA: And now we are getting things rolling for this story! Enjoy!**

 **And here is the list of Jaune's sisters.  
Violet – Age 30  
Anya – Age 28  
Maia – Age 26  
Aura – Age 23  
Jaesa – Age 18  
Thea – Age 13  
Diana – Age 7**

 **~oOo~**

Morning came and the Diamond Dogs were still getting settled in as equipment funneled in by air. It was a slow day as more and more equipment were being prepared. Several anti-IS emplacements were being installed on the island's most vulnerable areas. It was a surprising sight for several of the people in the academy, many of them had never seen such an imposing sight of well-armed and organized soldiers. Some of them had never even seen soldiers thanks to the current state of the world.

The girls of the RWBY and JNPR on the other hand were getting ready for their once in a lifetime shopping spree in another world. It was at this moment that a Stryker APC with the words 'We Have Yours' painted on the hull pulled over, followed by an MXT-MV. Coming out of the Stryker was someone Jaune just had to laugh at.

"No fucking way!"

Pyrrha and some of the girls gasped at the choice of language their friend used. "Jaune!"

The blond on the other hand just ignored them and approached the Diamond Dog. "Are we that desperate for cannon fodder that they clear out the sick, the lame, and the crazy?"

"Look at you boys!" The Diamond Dog shook Jaune's hand with a grin before greeting the rest of the unit.

"How's it goin' man?" Ichika shook his comrade's hand, earning curious looks from his own set of friends.

"What's up, dawg?" One of the other Diamond Dogs greeted the newcomer with a Hispanic acent.

"Look at these guys!" The newcomer laughed.

"How the fuck did you find us, Swarr?" Jaune asked, earning more frowns from his friends due to his choice of 'advanced vocabulary'.

"I…" Swarr clicked his tongue. "Just came from an 'educational' trip in Syria with Delta Company of the US Army.

"Shit." Ichika swore, earning shocked looks from his friends. "Those fucking reservists, dude?"

"Ichika!" Houki gasped. She had never heard her childhood friend swear before, and caught her and the rest of the girls completely off guard.

"Bruh…" Swarr began and looked at his buddies. "You're not gonna believe it. It has been madness since day one."

"What?" The Hispanic Diamond Dog asked. "Clusterfuck?"

"What happened to your cushy liaison job at Al Jabar?" Jaune asked.

"Fuck that." Swarr snorted. "I hadn't had a war since the Precipe. But I never would have got the job if it meant rolling with Delta."

"They're off the hook!" The newcomer exclaimed. "Dude, they don't got any gear or food. They were pulling escort duty just to eat. And then they got to rollin' into these hamlets and doing these shows of force, you know, cowboy shit for fun. Like this one time, I swear to god, they thought it'd be funny to give these little kids, like, porn mags, like Hustlers and Maxims and shit, show the little Hajjis what we're fighting for."

The soldiers laughed at that, including Jaune and Ichika. But the girls with them frowned that people would do something like that to children.

"This old Iraqi comes storming out, starts screaming at our interpreter about how we're fucking up their morals or some dumb shit, right? And he's super fucking pissed. The old man's got an RPG."

"What?" The soldiers gave him incredulous looks.

"Delta fucking freaks." Swarr then had a look of distress. "They lob like twenty-six Mark-19 rounds. They fuck up the whole hamlet."

"Jesus." Ichika shook his head.

"Fuck." Jaune spat and had a look of disgust.

"Bull-fucking-shit." One of the other Diamond Dogs said.

"Ollie North filmed the whole fucking thing."

Ichika and Jaune raised their eyebrows at the name. "The Oliver North?"

Swarr nodded. "Oliver fuckin' North was standing there with a camera crew from Fox News filming the whole thing like it was the turning point in the fucking year. These Delta fucks are like LAPD cops and DEA agents and fucking Air Marshals. You know what I mean?"

"What's the casualty count?"

"Aside from that old man? Even the kids got shot up."

"What the fuck man!?"

Pyrrha looked absolutely horrified at what she had just heard. Soldiers killed children? "Why would they do something like that? That's horrible!"

"These guys are trigger happy fucks." Swarr told her with a shrug. "They'll find any reason just so they can shoot. The line between soldier and civilian is just so completely fuckin' blurred in the Middle East. All Fox News did was film the whole thing and saying that their army was doing good work out there."

"War does not determine who is right." Jaune said as he looked at his friends. "Only who is left. Wars here are fought over many reasons, some significant… and some not so. Earth's history is riddled with one war after another, and I fear that will never ever change."

"Preaching to the crowd my brother!" A Diamond Dog exclaimed, earning nods and yells of agreement from the rest of the Diamond Dogs.

It was sad but true, war has become a source of profit for so many people this past decade. "We wouldn't exist without the war economy."

"War…" Weiss gulped. "Economy… war has an economy? That's absurd!"

Jaune nodded. "The world right now depends on war. Can you imagine what would happen if war just disappeared overnight? The stock market these days depends on the war economy and the war price."

"Think of it this way." Ichika added. "The war price, it's like a market price but for war. It fluctuates to demands not only for PMCs and military industry… but for the production, distribution, and energy supply networks that support them."

Charlotte had to nod at what her boyfriend had said. "I can attest to that. It's been growing by leaps and bounds, and investors are just starting to take notice. Even my father has dabbled himself in the trade. The Dunois Corporation hasn't been doing so well with IS production… so a part of the company had shifted to arms development for soldiers. In a way it saved the company from bankruptcy."

Ichika nodded as he continued. "For example: As the fighting in any given area becomes increasingly intense and prolonged, the war price goes up. The longer and bloodier the battle becomes, the higher service prices are going to get. To put it another way, the quieter things are, the better the bargains."

The teams of RWBY, JNPR, and SSSN, had become disturbed by that. In Remnant wars are nothing but terrible events. But here… war is welcomed, but not only that, it is profited. And Jaune had decided to get himself involved in such a horrible way of making money.

"That's pretty much how I do business as well!"

All the soldiers turned their eyes towards the Stryker and saw an African man with a diaper-wearing monkey emerging from the hatch of the APC.

"Drebin!" Jaune grinned as he approached the dark-skinned man and shook his hands. "Good to see you man!"

From the looks of the Diamond Dogs, this Drebin guy seemed to be a good friend of theirs as they all approached him and either shook his hands or patted him on the shoulder.

"I knew I recognized that Stryker!" Ichika patted the monkey's head before shaking the man's hand. "What are you doing here of all places?"

"I thought I might do a little sightseeing." His eyes roamed towards the three huntsman teams. "And my sources told me that other Outworlders like Jaune here just came in."

The three teams went stiff as Jaune chuckled and shook his head. "Nothing gets past you, huh?"

The man ran his hand over a scar on his head. "It's my job to be well-informed." He chuckled at the outfit Jaune was currently wearing. "Look at you, all dressed up."

Jaune right now was wearing a long black bulletproof trench coat that went down to his legs, beneath that were his combat trousers and boots coupled with a black high neck sweater with even more bulletproof weavings. And within that was his harness that fitted several of his pistol magazines along with his two favored guns. He was dressed in pseudo-civilian clothing, but that did not mean he didn't come packing.

And then there was his friend.

Drebin, or more specifically Drebin 893. He is a well-known arms dealer around the world that runs a company with the other Drebins roaming the battlefields. They started their own company called DREBINS, selling guns to PMCs, state armies, paramilitaries, and revolutionary groups. With the advent of the IS and guns practically collecting dust, this gave several militaries units to do some backdoor dealings in order to keep themselves funded.

"Hell…" Drebin grabbed a can of soda and drank it. He made a little belch that earned him disgusted looks from the girls. "This whole war economy is practically a license for us arms dealers to start printing money."

"You're an arms dealer!?" Blake exclaimed. She had horrible encounters with arms dealers, Torchwick of course was one of them as he was the one who sold weapons to the White Fang.

"There's a whole lot of us out there, missy." Drebin said. "Heck even the Diamond Dogs has dabbled in a little of arms dealing."

"We supply and sell weapons to state armies of third world countries." Jaune informed them. "It helps keeps us funded, and Drebin here helps us with selling our locally made weapons. He gets a commission depending on how many of our products he sells."

"The whole world isn't black and white." Drebin ruefully said as he drank his soda and let out another belch. "You're all standing in front of a bunch of 'green collars'. Those who make money off of the war economy."

 **Diamond Dogs**

 **Chapter 5: The War Economy**

 **Remnant**

 **Beacon Academy, Kingdom of Vale**

Professor Port had returned to Rmenant by bullhead and immediately made his way to Ozpin's office. Once there he was met with Glynda Goodwitch, Qrow Branwen, James Ironwood, and the Arc family. "Good afternoon to you all."

"Port." Ozpin raised an eyebrow and stood up before shaking the teacher's hand. "I wasn't expecting you so soon."

"Well our search per say has immediately bore fruit."

Violet Arc, Jaune's eldest, widened her eyes. "What? You mean-"

"We found your son…" Port rubbed his mustache. "Well… to be precise, he found us."

"What do you mean?" Anya, one of Jaune's other sisters, narrowed her eyes.

"The moment we sailed north towards land we were attacked by pirates of all things."

"Ui?" A little girl under a year old with snow white hair and little wolf ears tilted her head while being carried by one of the women in the room. This was San, a wolf Faunus, the latest addition to the Arc family as she was adopted sometime this year. "Ai?"

Port chuckled at the little girl's attempt to talk before continuing. "They were pirates from a country called Somalia, thus the term Somali pirates. Jaune detected us by some sort of unmanned aerial vehicle that is designed for reconnaissance. He came to our aid… but he wasn't alone."

All eyes were on the table as Port produced several pictures he had taken as well as several other photos that was given to him by Miller out of good faith. In a way Miller wanted to advertise the company to Remnant, and he thought Port would make the excellent advertiser.

There they saw pictures of the blond who had been missing for four years, he looked much more mature wearing that military uniform and the red beret. Elias and his eldest daughters then went over to several more pictures of Jaune with several other men wearing the same red beret, but what they observed that only a few of them wore it.

"His arm…"

"The people that took him in built him a new one to replace the one he had lost."

"What is the meaning of the beret?" Violet asked.

"The Ocelot Unit." Port replied.

"Ocelot Unit?"

The professor nodded. "From what I have found, the Ocelot Unit is an elite unit of soldiers, specializing in asymmetrical warfare."

Ironwood raised an eyebrow as his curiosity was peeked. "Asymmetrical warfare you say?"

"Indeed. Their way of fighting is nothing like I have ever seen. Their training is brutal. They are some of the most disciplined fighters I have ever seen. And Jaune… the boy seems to be one of their best and brightest."

"What?" Elias widened his eyes.

Port showed them a picture of Jaune in action alongside several of his comrades, he wasn't wearing the beret this time but instead wore a hood over his head. His uniform was coloured in desert camouflage that blended him in the desert sand. In his hands was an assault rifle of conventional design. His eyes were different, no longer the kind and naïve Jaune that they once knew. More pictures showed him directing orders and targets, another showed him wielding a large caliber sniper rifle.

"The Ocelot Unit is commanded by this man." Port then showed them the picture of a white-haired man wearing a brown duster jacket and reddish-orange shirt, black pants, and cowboy boots with spurs. "His real name is Adamska, sometimes Shalashaska, but he is mostly known as Revolver Ocelot, or just Ocelot. He is also Jaune's mentor, and the person responsible for turning Jaune into what he is today… a Diamond Dog."

"D-Diamond Dog." Violet was getting increasingly worried and fearful for what she is about to find out.

"One of Earth's fastest growing private military forces." Port informed them. "They are an organized form of mercenaries with not only training, but the equipment and firepower to make them a force to be reckoned with."

Ironwood didn't like the sound of that. "You're telling me a bunch of mercenaries have the strength to take on a nation?"

Port nodded. "They are unlike anything I have ever seen. Their world is in a state of slight disarray due to things I have yet to find out, but all I know is that private military forces are much more prominent than what we are used to."

"Wonderful." Ironwood let out a frustrated huff. Just what he needed, a headache that could most likely challenge the Atlesian military.

Diana, one of the other sisters, picked up a photo of Jaune standing with other soldiers, smiling at the camera. It was a smile she had never seen before. It was a genuine smile, not like the ones he gave them when he was younger, one filled with pain and loneliness. He really looked happy here. She shifted to the next picture of a still smiling Jaune, only that he was with a dark-skinned man who looked much older than he was.

"That would be Stubborn Boa as he is called. I didn't learn his real name but… he and Jaune were close, almost like brothers. He died nearly two weeks ago due to a parasite outbreak in their quarantine platform. More than a hundred men died that day."

"Oh my goodness." Violet lightly gasped. "And what happened to Jaune?"

"He was devastated. In fact him and his comrades were equally devastated." Port then pulled out his scroll but then looked at the little Faunus. "I would advise that the child be excused from this… the recording and footage I am about to show you… is disturbing."

 **~oOo~**

They had watched the video of Huey Emmerich's trial, the man responsible for the death of more than a hundred Diamond Dogs. They had witnessed Jaune spout out two words that they never thought they would hear him say.

" **KILL HIM!"**

The cries of each Diamond Dog was heard as they poured out all their hate and anger towards this scientist who had done a heinous crime. They were so angry that they wanted this man to be put to death. It was a concept that none of them were really used to since humanity here in Remnant was united. The Diamond Dogs had lost brothers and sisters in that outbreak, and they all looked at Huey to blame. They then realized that Earth is a violent world with its history filled with even more bloodshed than Remnant's.

Jaune's eldest sisters were just watching as their baby brother spouted out two powerful words alongside the soldiers. He had completely changed from the inside out and it was almost too much for them to take. But then that wasn't the worst part… no… the worst part came what they would see next.

"Oh Oum…"

They watched Jaune hold a pair of electric prods. He stood beside Ocelot as they interrogated Huey after the trial, trying to squeeze out whatever information he had left. The poor man was shirtless and had a cloth bag over his head.

And then…

The sisters looked away as Jaune began electrocuting the man.

Glynda's eyes were wide that such a sweet young man would do something like this. "He's torturing him…"

Port just looked on with sadness as he crossed his arms. "Their method of extracting information – while crude – produces results in an efficient manner. It seems combat wasn't the only skill Ocelot had taught Jaune. And what shocked me the most was that Jaune willingly learned all of them."

"Why?" Violet was now on the brink of tears as her breath became shaky.

"I do not know the reasons why… but if I made a guess… it had something to do with four years ago."

"Oh merciful Oum…" Maia, one of the other sisters gagged at the sight of Jaune waterboarding Huey. Her own brother… pouring water over the cloth bag, making the man feel like he was drowning. "This can't be happening. This… this isn't Jaune… it just can't!"

"Miss Arc." Ozpin examined the video and sighed. "That is your brother."

"This isn't like him…" Maia whispered. "I remember the times he would tell me he wants to be a hero when he grows up. But this… this is not what a hero does!"

Unfortunately for them, Port played for them something else. This time it was a personal video log Jaune had made. It was there the image of a weary Jaune was shown, and the date showed that it was recorded nearly four years ago. It was there they finally got a close look of his mechanical arm."

" **I uh…"** Jaune began as he rubbed his face before letting out a sigh. **"I've been here for more than a week now. Boss told me that it would be good for me to spend my first month just recuperating. So far it's been good… I'm already learning how to use a gun and other stuff. It's definitely not huntsman business that they're doing here but it's definitely interesting to say the least."**

He let out another sigh and leaned onto his seat. **"All my life… all I ever wanted was to be a huntsman. When I was a kid all I ever did was watch my older sisters train into becoming powerful huntresses. And when I got older I was able to finally train… but…"**

They saw the distressed look in his eyes, they the disappointment, the pain… Elias then began to feel guilty as he remembered the painful memories of his son trying and failing every single time.

" **I just don't know…"** Jaune's voice became husky. **"I don't know what went wrong, and why I couldn't accomplish simple tasks. I tried so hard… but…"**

" **You just couldn't cut it?"** The voice of Ocelot came in as he finished the sentence, earning a nod from the blond.

" **My dad just… I think he just gave up, you know? Just one day he decided that the training would stop."**

Elias sat down on the couch with a defeated look while Violet came to her father's side and rubbed his back. The pain in Jaune's words struck their hearts like a poisoned dagger.

" **I don't blame him though."** Jaune said with a bitter smile. **"I mean… there's no way he should be training a fuckup like me."**

The fact that he had begun to use such crude language to describe himself had broken all of their hearts. It was becoming far too much for them.

" **But here… I won't be training as a huntsman…"**

" **No you won't."** Ocelot said. **"Here you will learn what it means to be a soldier. We are Diamond Dogs, mercenaries, dogs of war… here we do the devil's work because we have to. Earth is an unforgiving world but…"**

" **It is a land ripe with opportunity."** Jaune said. **"A land where I can be whoever I want to be."**

" **That's right… so what is it that you want to be… a hero?"**

To their shock, he shook his head. He did not want to be a hero.

" **I was fooling myself. The day I lost my original arm was the day I realized that I can never be one."** He lifted his mechanical arm and clenched his fist. **"Maybe a huntsman was something I never was cut out to be. Maybe… this is it. Commander Ocelot, I want to learn what it means to live."**

Ocelot gave him a smile and nodded. **"The road you decided to take is not an easy one, Jaune. Are you ready for it?"**

" **Yes… sir."**

The screen then jumped to the next one, this time it was a few months later.

" **Alright… Personal Log 01, Jaune Arc, Diamond Dogs."** Jaune said to himself as he adjusted the camera, and this time he was wearing his full uniform. **"So! A lot has happened and uh… wow… just wow… training had never been more awesome. Commander Ocelot really knows what he's doing when he started teaching me. The guys here are great… a lot of trainees here who are my age but the Boss told me that because I had 'some'…"** He made an air quote with his fingers. **"Prior training, everything was just coming in naturally. Another thing… sword training… was completely never my thing."**

Elias just stared at the video as his son made a sheepish look.

" **Turns out I'm a lot better with a knife and gun than I am with a sword and board. Heck even Ruby noticed it right away…"**

"If only we found that out." The Arc patriarch whispered. "I failed him..."

" **And not only that… the martial arts of this world are incredible. Some of them even reminded me of the ones Ren would use, and then there's CQC, which is sort of a combination of Judo and other types. I can't believe I'm saying this but… I just can't get enough of it."** Jaune made a grin as he got even more excited. **"I can't wait to see what I get to learn tomorrow. And then… once my training is done… I'll be on my first deployment."**

The blond let out a chuckle and tapped his mechanical fingers. **"Everything that I am learning here is just a different kind of experience for me. In just a single month I soaked everything that was taught to me. It's like everything just came naturally, you know? I mean just three months in and I am already in the advanced courses for SPECOPS training. SPECOPS by the way stands for Special Operations. You have the regular grunts… which the closest thing to describe them would be the sledgehammer. But then you got SPECOPS… which is the scalpel, delivering precision strikes and your enemy doesn't even know it until it's too late. That's how hardcore it is. The training is just absolutely brutal… but it's all worth it."**

Jaune then clapped his hands and grinned. **"So yeah! That's it… uh… well… I guess I'll see you later. Hehe."**

" **Jaune?"**

" **Yeah Ruby?"**

" **Dinner's ready!"**

"Are they…?" Violet widened her eyes. "Living together?"

Once the video ended Port saw the family who were clearly all disappointed in themselves. "Jaune has effectively built a life of his own there. A life that he would rather die than give it all up." He then placed a folder on the table by the couches where the Arc family was sitting. "This one… shows the still tender side of the young man. A side that he still holds close to his heart."

Violet shakily grabbed the folder and opened it. Her breath hitched as she saw the first picture, her daughters gathered around and widened their eyes as they saw something so unbelievable, it completely defeated everything they had seen. What they saw was Jaune in the sunset, and with him was a beautiful young woman with long dark red hair tied to a ponytail. Their arms were wrapped around each other with loving smiles on their faces and their foreheads pressed up against each other. Their eyes were closed as they relished in each other's company. But most of all… they looked happy.

"Young Jaune… has found his own happiness through her."

"W-What…" Elias tried to hold back the tears. "What is her name?"

"Ruby." Port said. "Her name is Ruby… daughter of Summer Rose and Taiyang Xiao Long. She was the other student that went missing four years ago."

"Wait, wait, wait!" Qrow Branwen, Yang and Ruby's uncle, stopped them for a moment. "You're telling me my own niece is with him?"

"In an intimate relationship to be exact." Port told him.

Qrow groaned and rubbed his face. "Tai is going to freak…"

"Understatement of the century." Glynda said while adjusting her glasses.

Violet went over the other photos and found one where Jaune was laying on a bench with his head resting over her lap. While this happened she was playing with his hair while giving him a loving smile. The girl was beautiful, incredibly beautiful. Flipping to the next photo she and her sisters could not help but smile. There he was with Ruby… kissing each other in the rain.

Qrow sighed as he looked at the picture. "She really looks like Summer… practically a carbon copy."

"They're so in love." Anya said. "Jauney's all grown up now."

"Still doesn't make me feel any better." Elias whispered.

"Father…"

"I should have paid attention to him more."

"I can arrange for you to come with me once I get back." Port told them. "They are currently in a country called Japan on a security mission. The three teams are also there for some rest and relaxation as the Diamond Dogs' Mother Base has no facilities like shops and whatnot. From what I've been told Japan is quite an exotic country. I can arrange a trip immediately if you all wish to come."

"Of course!" Elias stood up and nodded. "How soon is the next flight?"

"It can happen tonight if you wish. But I must warn you, Earth can be quite hostile if you're not careful. But with the care of the Diamond Dogs everything should be alright."

"We will prepare." Elias said in a determined tone as he nodded. "It is time I make things right for once."

The three eldest daughters, Violet, Anya, and Maia, all nodded as well.

"I want Jaune to at least see his nieces and nephews again." The eldest said. "And meet the newest addition. This family needs to be whole once more."

"Madam?" A maid peeked through the door. "Young mistress San is getting fussy."

"Send her in." Violet ordered.

"Yes madam."

 **~oOo~**

A limousine, or more specifically a Hummer Limousine. And the boys of SSSN were enjoying themselves with the drinks that came with the vehicle. The girls felt glamorous of course with Yang having stars in her eyes. Pyrrha was of course enjoying herself but looked a little jealous with how Ruby was just enjoying herself, resting her head on Jaune's shoulder.

Ruby was certainly a beautiful young woman with her lithe frame and stature, standing at 5'5. Her red and white summer dress and cotton blazer complimented her natural beauty. She wore no makeup whatsoever, and that certainly set the bar.

"Jeez." Yang whispered to her best friend. "Ruby's really rocking that dress. I mean… she used to hate prettying herself up."

"Four years is a long time, Yang." Blake whispered back. "But you got to admit, she's gotten much more beautiful."

"Yeah… she kinda looks like… mom…"

"This is awesome!" Sun exclaimed, earning a rolled eye from his girlfriend Blake.

Jaune on the other hand certainly looked regal with that trench coat of his and sunglasses. All he did was sit there while his girlfriend used him as a pillow.

"Hey Jaune!" Sun turned to his fellow blond. "Thanks for this, man! This rocks!"

"Just make sure to keep your tail hidden." Jaune said. "Can't have you drawing attention."

"No worries man!"

The Diamond dog just gave him a small smile before relaxing himself.

"Jaune." Blake spoke up as the vehicle stopped due to traffic. "Is it true about this country? About people being accepting of… my kind?"

The blond just smiled at her as he drew his hand and pointed out the window. "See for yourself. Welcome to the Akihabara district of Tokyo."

The cat Faunus didn't know what he was talking about, but the moment she turned her head her eyes widened in utter disbelief. All around the area were several cartoon advertisements and cosplayers going about their business. And then she finally saw it, cartoon characters with animal ears and tails, the most common of them were cat and rabbit ears.

"If people saw you and realize you are a real cat girl… they could go crazy over you."

"I…" Blake was speechless. Seeing people buying headbands with cat ears and wearing them. This place… it was Faunus paradise.

"There's a popular animated series here called Dog Days." Jaune informed her. "You should check it out. Japan's culture is unique compared to the rest of the world."

Yang saw her best friend just stick her face to the window and could have sworn that she shed a few tears. "Blake… are you crying?"

"N-No!" The cat Faunus was by now bawling her eyes out as she had just witnessed what could be the future of her entire race. "This place is paradise!"

Moments later, and after Blake had finally calmed down from her drama, the vehicle stopped at a certain high-class hotel in the middle of Akihabara. It certainly looked the part. As the group got off Sun grumbled as he tugged the shirt that Blake made him wear. "Babe, do I have to wear this?"

"Yes." The cat Faunus gave him a mild glare. "The last thing I want is you getting unwanted attention."

"Since when do I ever get attention?"

All Blake did was just mildly glare at him while the bellboys got everyone's bags and escorted them into the hotel. Her teammates – minus Weiss – were certainly excited that they were getting into such a classy hotel. It was after all their first time getting into such a place.

"Mister Arc." A dark-skinned receptionist greeted the blond Diamond Dog who had his girlfriend's arms wrapped around his. "It is wonderful to have you here in the Continental Japan once again."

"Hello Abioye." Jaune nodded to the African receptionist as he handed the man four gold coins. "I would like to have four suites for all of us. We'll be staying here for a week."

"At once." The receptionist nodded and handed the blond the key cards. "Your usual room plus three. Enjoy your stay Mister Arc, and thank you once again for choosing Continental."

"Of course."

"This place certainly as it." Weiss said as she was impressed with the service.

"Continental is known for their excellent services. Aside from Japan they have one hotel in the US, Russia, and Britain."

"And they're certainly not cheap…" Weiss mumbled as she didn't even bother mentioning the gold coins he used.

"No… no they are not."

The suites were certainly not disappointing. They were large rooms with separate bedrooms. It was more like a penthouse than a hotel suite. This was the world that Jaune was living in, and that made Weiss impressed. While the teams sorted out where they would be sleeping, the couple made themselves at home in the usual suite that they always had whenever they came to stay at the continental. It wasn't as large as the other three since it was only for them.

"This really is becoming a tradition for us." Ruby said as she looked out the window with Jaune hugging her from behind.

"Well the Continental does offer excellent services. And I only want the best for you."

"Keep this up and I might end up getting spoiled."

"Is that a bad thing?"

She giggled and sighed as she felt her lover's lips nibbling on her neck. She yelped in surprise before going into laughter as he brought her down to the bed and kissed her some more. Tongues lashed and battled in a passionate dance with hands roaming around. But that moment was ruined when they heard a shaky voice. At the door were their friends, all of them with extremely flushed faces. Well for Yang's case… she went completely catatonic.

"Uh…" Nora gulped and tried to loosen the tightness in her neck. "Hehe… uh… is this a bad time?"

Blake on the other hand was hiding the blush behind a Ninjas of Love book, volume 33.

And Weiss… "D-Do you two realize what you're doing!? This is… indecent!"

Jaune sighed while his lover rolled her eyes.

"It's not like we haven't done it yet." Ruby said.

"W-What?" Pyrrha's breath hitched when she heard Ruby's words. "Y-You two…"

Weiss's mouth was wide open and her blush deepened. "You… actually… when!?"

"When was it?" Jaune asked in a hushed tone.

Ruby pursed her lips. "Mmm… I think it was right after our fifth date. I can't exactly remember when…" She then gave him a sultry smile and poked his chest. "But I do remember how it went."

Jaune grinned and pecked his lips. "Of course you do…"

"EHEM!" Weiss's face was so red you could see steam coming out of her head.

"Yang!? Yang, get a hold of yourself!" Blake on the other hand tried to keep her best friend in the conscious world.

The couple got up with a sigh and straightened themselves, although they did looked slightly bashful.

"Well then…" Jaune spoke up and decided to break the ice. "Who's up for some lunch?"

 **~oOo~**

"So nice to see you again, Jaune my boy." A British man well into his mid-fifties greeted the young Diamond Dog with a smile as he shook his hand.

"Likewise, Winston."

"And Ruby." Winston turned to the golden beauty as he took his hand and kissed it. "As radiant as ever."

"Ever the charmer." Ruby just gave him a smile.

Weiss could not believe what she was seeing. Her old partner Ruby was acting all… elegant. It just couldn't be possible. It just…

"Snow Angel?" Neptune whispered. "Are you alright?"

The Schnee heiress nodded.

"I thought you would be in the US?" Jaune asked.

Winston shrugged. "I wanted a change in scenery for once. And who might these young people be?"

"Old friends of mine who came here to visit."

"Ah." The Englishman nodded as he guided them. "Now please, do come. We are having a buffet tonight."

"This is Winston." Jaune introduced the man to them. "He owns the Continental hotels around the world."

The older man gave them a smile. "We pride ourselves in excellent service."

"A pleasure to meet you." Weiss snapped herself out of her stupor and responded to the man's greeting, offered him her hand. "Weiss Schnee."

Winston of course kissed the hand. "A pleasure to meet you, Miss Schnee. Now please, I shall personally show you to your seats."

Once they were seated, Winston of course joined them with the guys well into their meals. The couple sat down with glasses of liquor and their meals right in front of them. While the Continental is a hotel, it is a hotel that is popular for usage among the PMCs and… assassins. In fact that was really the sole purpose of the hotel, to provide a haven for them. Winston of course set up the rules that no business is to be conducted on premises or suffer heavy consequences. But other than that the Continental is a hotel that prides in providing excellent service, earning it five stars from the several reviewers around the world. Prices of course were high but that is to be expected for such a prestigious hotel.

And of course, the currency used. While normal currency is fine, PMCs and contract killers use a unique way of paying for service. They were similar to the South-African Krugerrand coins as they were made from pure gold. It is in this way that they can transfer untraceable money around the world, this in itself formed just a small part of the war economy. It is a side the UN has absolutely no idea about. Nobody knows who creates and mints these coins, but all they know is that it has become a part of this underground society.

"These are good times we are living in, my boy."

Jaune chuckled as he dug into his nice beef steak. "You're doing pretty well for yourself."

"With what the war economy and all, product is coming in by the truck load. Business has only started to truly boom this year."

"I hear some bigtime investors and amateur entrepreneurs have been wanting to dabble in the war economy. Roughly 50% of the world's stock market is controlled by it."

"Indeed." Winston nodded as he poured himself a glass of Bourbon. He then looked at the blond's empty glass and smiled. "Bourbon?"

"Please." Jaune moved his empty glass forward.

"And for you, Miss Ruby?"

Ruby waved her hand. "I am fine, but thank you anyway Winston."

"Of course." The Englishman just smiled and lifted his glass as he turned back to Jaune. "This world would be nothing without it. A toast… to the war economy."

Jaune smiled and clanged his little glass up against his friend's. "To the war economy."

 **~oOo~**

Violet, the eldest daughter of the Arc family, sat with her two other younger sisters as they privately watched one of the other interview footages of their little brother. Out of all the ones they had watched, this one was the one that hid them the hardest.

" **So…"** The voice of what appeared to be a UN interviewer was heard speaking to the blond. **"You and Ruby have been with us for almost two years and you already logged about five thousand hours of combat, most of them in Afghanistan. You've been recognized by the international community, more specifically the military aspect, as not one of the deadliest soldiers but one of the deadliest snipers in the world."**

" **Yup."** Jaune reclined in his seat, now wearing a full battle dress.

" **Can you tell me, what was it like taking your first life during your first mission?"**

" **Oh it was hard."** Jaune replied with a nod. **"But… I realized I don't have the time to reflect about the lives I took."**

" **Why not?"**

" **That's not me."**

" **What do you mean?"** The reporter asked. **"What's not you?"**

Jaune twiddled his thumbs for a moment as he took a deep breath. **"The thing that bothers me the most… are all the lives that I couldn't save."**

" **I see."** The reporter nodded. **"So… Mister Arc, or should I say Captain?"**

" **Either is fine."**

" **Alright… can you tell me, what it is like to be on the field? Personally I mean."**

Jaune hummed and rubbed his chin for a second. **"I can't get enough of it."**

Maia's eyes widened when he heard those words. "What… what did he say?"

" **You… what?"**

" **I don't know how to explain it but… the moment you step into a battlefield, you get this sudden surge of adrenaline, and it never leaves until the job is done. I don't what exactly how I feel when I'm out there, and I certainly can't explain it completely. But all I can say is that whenever I leave the battlefield when the job is done, I just prepare for my next operation. I can't wait to get back out there."**

The sisters just stared at the screen after they had watched the video finish. None of them could say anything.

" _ **The rush of battle is a potent and often lethal addiction, war is a drug."**_ **– From the book War Is a Force that Gives Us Meaning by Chris Hedge**

 **NA: It's just small talk like that and it gives me shivers. Overly polite people and yet they're extremely dangerous. So yes… I incorporated the underground economy of John Wick with those coins… and of course added Winston.**

 **But hey, our man Drebin is finally here.**

 **And as for San, who can guess where the reference is from? White wolf… and a girl. I'll give you an obvious hint, it's a movie from Studio Ghibli.**

 **WE HAVE YOURS.**


End file.
